New Perspective Senior Living - Highland Park presents a mixed picture: many families and residents praise the physical environment, amenities, and parts of the care team, while others describe operational gaps that can affect day-to-day living. The community is frequently described as pleasant and well appointed — a riverside campus with attractive landscaping, fireplaces and enclosed patios, private apartments furnished in a homelike style, and a variety of on-site amenities such as a salon, podiatry visits, and a coffee bar. Dining is positioned as restaurant-style with flexible dietary accommodations; some residents highlight well-prepared diabetic and special-diet meals and active social dining spaces.
Staff and care quality are the most variable area. Numerous accounts describe warm, attentive, and long-tenured caregivers and nursing staff, with leadership and certain directors praised for responsiveness and helpful move-in coordination. At the same time, a recurring pattern includes high staff turnover, training gaps among aides, and inconsistent clinical oversight. Reported operational consequences include delays in answering call bells, inconsistent medication administration, and limited night/weekend coverage. Memory-care services draw particular concern in several accounts: staffing and programming there are described as insufficient or in need of stronger training and engagement strategies.
Dining and activities are also areas of contrasts. The community offers an active events calendar, music, lectures, outings, and seasonal parties; off-site trips and resident-led interactions are cited as meaningful quality-of-life contributors. However, reviewers report variability in meal quality and service continuity — examples include cold meals, inconsistent portioning, and menu simplification perceived as cost-driven. Activity availability for memory-care residents and continuity of scheduled outings have been noted as areas for improvement, with occasional transportation or staffing shortfalls affecting planned events.
Facility operations and maintenance show strengths and weaknesses. The campus is generally kept presentable and has useful safety features (emergency call systems, some memory-care alarms), but there are recurring reports of delayed maintenance, unfinished repairs, inconsistent housekeeping and laundry processes, and pest-control concerns in some units. Safety-related equipment and apartment setup issues (locks, hinges, bed frames, door trim) have been raised as operational risks that require attention. Financial and administrative processes are another stress point: families cite opaque billing practices, inconsistent charge reconciliation, and disputed fees, alongside examples of positive, transparent interactions with individual directors.
Management and governance appear to be in flux in places: several families credit attentive executive leadership and recent hires who are addressing problems, while others describe communication gaps, slow follow-through, and instances requiring external escalation. Ombudsman involvement and formal complaints were referenced in a small number of accounts, signaling that some issues have prompted regulatory or advocacy attention.
Bottom line: Highland Park offers many of the physical and programmatic attributes families seek in assisted living and memory care — attractive campus, restaurant-style dining options, and active programming — and it has dedicated staff and leaders who are praised in numerous accounts. Those positives coexist with consistent operational patterns that prospective residents should evaluate closely: staffing stability and training, night/weekend coverage, housekeeping and pest-control protocols, maintenance responsiveness, memory-care programming, and billing transparency. Recommended next steps for prospective families include an in-person tour focused on staffing ratios (including night coverage), review of recent inspection or ombudsman records, clarification of laundry/housekeeping and pest-control policies, sample meal observations (meal temperature and quality), and a written explanation of billing practices and change-of-placement protocols.
