Page 6 of Best Senior Communities in South Dakota

Overview of Five Counties Nursing Home

Five Counties Nursing Home offers nursing home and skilled nursing care, assisted living, and independent living in Lemmon, South Dakota. Nursing home and skilled nursing care include licensed nursing care on site around the clock, while assisted living helps with daily tasks such as dressing, bathing, and medication while a resident keeps an apartment. Independent living provides private living with community services and no daily care.

Short term and long term care are available, covering temporary skilled stays as well as ongoing nursing care. Rehabilitation services support residents who need therapy as part of their care. The range of care levels may suit a resident whose needs grow over time, since moving to another level can happen without leaving the community or starting over socially.

Five Counties Nursing Home has 37 beds. Total nurse staffing is 3 hours and 51 minutes per resident each day, representing the daily nursing time assigned per resident. The community opened in 1951 and is administered by Jordan Fish.

Payment options include Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay. Medicare generally covers short term skilled care after a hospital stay rather than long term residence, while Medicaid may help when savings do not cover a long stay; private pay is also accepted. A Walk Score of 42 places the area in a car dependent setting, so most errands require a car or a ride, including routine outings for a resident who no longer drives.

Overview of Avantara Arrowhead

Seventy-five percent occupancy, or 51 of 68 beds, at a nursing home positioned in Rapid City’s Broadmoor Subdivision, about 2.3 miles from the city center and less than a mile from the nearest hospital. The address is 2500 Arrowhead Dr, and the surrounding area is car-dependent (Walk Score 12). Sharon Martin administers the facility, which operates within the Avantara network.

The average length of stay is 174 days. That number places Avantara Arrowhead in a middle zone: not a pure short-stay rehab operation, but not configured primarily around indefinite long-term residence either. Rehabilitation services and short-term rehab are the confirmed service lines, with orthopedic care listed as a clinical program.

Staffing reported to CMS totals 2 hours and 48 minutes of nursing care per resident per day. Registered nurses account for 47 minutes; nurse aides account for 2 hours and 2 minutes. Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay are all accepted.

Avantara Arrowhead is a mid-sized nursing home serving residents in post-acute and transitional care, with orthopedic rehabilitation among its confirmed clinical offerings and full coverage across Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay.

Overview of Washington Crossing

Ten beds and eighteen years in operation; that says a lot about Washington Crossing, an assisted living and independent living community in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, located at 4709 E 6th St #108. The Walk Score sits at 34, so a handful of errands are doable on foot, though most trips still call for driving.

A 10-bed community means residents and staff are likely to know each other well, something that’s harder to pull off at a 100-plus bed facility down the road. Beth Fraction serves as Community Director, giving the community a named point of leadership rather than an anonymous management layer.

Day to day, there’s a fair amount on offer: a fitness center, library, dining room, restaurant, and art studio round out the physical amenities, while the activities calendar pulls in crafting sessions, concerts, card games, and fitness classes on a regular basis. Home care is also available as an additional service, useful for residents who need a bit more support without a full move to a higher level of care.

Pets aren’t part of the picture here, so anyone hoping to bring a dog or cat along will need to look elsewhere. What Washington Crossing amounts to, in the end, is a small, long-running community built around close relationships and a steady activity calendar, one where residents can expect to be known by name rather than lost in a crowd.

Overview of Arrowhead Lodge Senior Living

Arrowhead Lodge is an independent living and assisted living home with respite care in Rapid City. They pride themselves on the services that are delivered with only the best in its class brought by their premier level of care entrusted to residents. The senior living home boasts its innovative and modern approach to senior care; they have ensured that they provide a spectrum of care as they understand the unique needs of each individual. Arrowhead Lodge’s management and staff are well-trained professionals that ensure that residents are being heard and provide a lifestyle that suits their needs.

Beautifully furnished common areas, walking paths, and outdoor patios are offered for seniors to have families come visit more often and have a place to socialize. Other services include meals, security, and affordable senior housing.

Pine Hills Retirement Community is an assisted living community in Hot Springs, South Dakota, that provides personal care. Managed by Vickie Nekuda, this 78-bed community is the only assisted living provider featured in local Fall River County comparison data. It also serves as a vital resource for older adults throughout the Southern Black Hills region.

The dining experience here is distinctively elevated, with meals prepared by an on-site chef and supervised by a state-licensed nutritionist, making it stand out among others that use outsourced catering. This culinary approach also aligns with a comprehensive wellness philosophy that encompasses independent living, assisted living, medical services, rehabilitation services, tailored wellness programming for older adults, and a calendar of social events. Additionally, licensed nurses and CNAs provide around-the-clock staffing coverage.

With a Walk Score of 52, the location is in a moderately walkable neighborhood in Hot Springs, allowing residents to manage certain daily errands on foot while enjoying convenient access to the town center. Meanwhile, its placement within Fall River County also offers proximity to the Veterans Administration Black Hills Health Care System, appealing to veteran residents and families exploring VA Aid and Attendance benefits.

Pine Hills Retirement Community is a great option for older adults in Hot Springs and the surrounding Fall River County area looking for an independent or assisted living lifestyle centered on wellness, chef-driven dining, and professional clinical support in a premier senior living destination.

Owned by Stroschein Properties III LLC, Alcester Care and Rehab Center is a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in Alcester, South Dakota. The 41-bed home is located at 101 Church Street and serves residents who need ongoing nursing care and support during recovery after an illness or hospital stay. Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay are accepted, giving families several options for covering care costs.

The facility has an occupancy rate of 95%, where residents stay an average of about 523 days. The population is a mix of people receiving rehabilitation services and those needing longer-term nursing care.

Nurse staffing averages 3 hours and 43 minutes of nursing care each day. Registered nurses, nurse aides, and licensed practical or vocational nurses make up the care team. This level of support helps residents during recovery and assists those who need ongoing skilled nursing care and daily medical oversight.

The facility is located in a rural part of South Dakota. Alcester has a Walk Score of 14, making the area car-dependent. Most errands and visits require transportation. Families who prefer a smaller community setting may appreciate the town’s quieter environment.

Daily life is supported by practical amenities throughout the facility. Residents are served meals in a large dining room. Other features include a chapel, sun room, beauty shop, laundry services, and outdoor spaces such as a backyard area and gazebo, and residents and visitors can spend time together here.

Families looking for skilled nursing and rehabilitation care in a small-town setting should consider Alcester Care and Rehab Center for its nursing support, rehabilitation services, and on-site amenities that support short-term recovery and ongoing care needs.

Overview of Avantara Clark City

Avantara Clark City provides nursing home, hospice care, and skilled nursing services in Clark, SD. Nursing home and skilled nursing services give residents a residential setting with licensed nursing care on site around the clock, while hospice care focuses on comfort for a person with a life limiting illness. Short term rehabilitation gives a resident a temporary setting for recovery after an illness, injury, or medical treatment.

Orthopedic care, oncology recovery care, wound care, and rehabilitation services may suit someone recovering from orthopedic treatment or cancer care. The home has 35 beds. Total nurse staffing is 3h 3m per resident/day, representing the total daily nurse time allocated to each resident across the nursing staff. Families can use Medicare, Medicaid, or private pay to fund care, and Rachel Morehouse serves as administrator.

Overview of Avantara Huron

Avantara Huron opened recently on Michigan Ave. SW in Huron, South Dakota, under the administration of Laurie Solem. It is a nursing home. It has 80 beds, 56 of them currently occupied, and sits in a neighborhood where a car is essentially required for most errands (Walk Score 27).

The care model here is built around post-acute recovery. Residents coming off cardiac events, orthopedic procedures, or pulmonary conditions have dedicated recovery programs waiting for them. Total nursing coverage runs 3 hours and 31 minutes per resident per day, with registered nurses accounting for 40 minutes of that. Suites are available in private and semi-private configurations depending on preference and availability.

Meals are prepared from fresh ingredients with nutritional balance as the stated priority. On the amenities side, the facility has an on-site salon and community spaces that families can use for gatherings and events. State inspections have tended to center on areas like infection prevention and control, care planning and documentation, and fall and injury prevention.

Payment coverage spans Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay. That range matters for a facility with a 135-day average stay: some residents arrive on Medicare short-term rehab benefits and transition to Medicaid as their stay extends, and the facility is structured to accommodate that arc. Avantara Huron is set up for people arriving from a hospital who need a supervised rehabilitation period before going home, not for those seeking a long-term residential placement.

Overview of Avantara Milbank

Avantara Milbank offers nursing home, skilled nursing, hospice care, and memory care in Milbank, SD. Nursing home and skilled nursing care provide licensed nursing care on site around the clock for residents who need ongoing clinical support, while memory care provides a secured setting with supervision for someone at risk of wandering; hospice care supports residents receiving end-of-life care.

The community has 45 beds, a smaller setting where staff and residents can get to know each other. Short-term rehabilitation and rehabilitation services support recovery, with programs for post-surgical care, stroke and other neurological conditions, cardiac care, oncology recovery, orthopedic rehabilitation, and pulmonary care. Avantara Milbank may be a good fit for someone whose needs include memory supervision or rehabilitation for one of these conditions.

Total nurse staffing is 3h 17m per resident each day, representing the documented daily hands-on nursing time allocated per resident. Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay are accepted, giving families public coverage options or the ability to pay directly. A Walk Score of 64 out of 100 means the area is somewhat walkable, with some errands possible on foot, so a resident who no longer drives may be able to reach nearby errands independently. Keisha Dorscher serves as the administrator.

Overview of Park Place Assisted Living

Park Place Assisted Living is a senior living community in Reno, Nevada, that offers assisted living and independent living. Licensed as a Residential Facility for Groups and in operation for nearly 30 years, this 60-bed community has studio accommodations on a single-story campus.

The community currently has 41 of 60 beds occupied, representing an occupancy rate of 68%, which is below the state of Nevada’s average of 81.5%. Notably, occupancy has fluctuated over the years, reaching as high as 80% capacity during periods in 2024. Assisted living and independent living are among the living options provided, along with transportation services, housekeeping, fitness and recreation programming, and a pet-friendly environment within a studio-based, single-story layout.

Nevada’s Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Health Care Quality and Compliance, has inspected the community through annual surveys and complaint investigations since at least 2012, leading to a total of 33 inspections. Over that tracked window, the community has averaged approximately 10.2 deficiencies per year, which is about 44% above the Nevada average of 7.1 per year. Recurring themes include medication management, such as administration errors, unsecured medications, and incomplete medication records, along with staff training compliance regarding caregiver training timelines, elder abuse prevention, infection control, and cultural competency, as well as health and sanitation issues in food safety and kitchen practices.

Moreover, the most recent annual survey, conducted July 16, 2025, cited 14 deficiencies across administrator oversight, caregiver qualifications, medication documentation, TB screening, infection control program review, and first-aid kit compliance. Two substantiated complaint investigations are also on record, including the April 2025 investigation, which confirmed that six employees were performing blood sugar testing and insulin injections without documented training, a finding that coincided with a resident being hospitalized for critically low blood sugar. Another complaint investigation in December 2024 substantiated that a resident went without a prescribed medication for 15 days, resulting in withdrawal symptoms and an emergency room visit, and that a resident’s shower was not wheelchair accessible. However, no fines or license suspensions were listed in the available reports.

The location is situated in a car-dependent part of Reno with a Walk Score of 6, making personal transportation or the community’s own transportation services a practical necessity for most residents.

With a 29-year operating history and smaller scale, Park Place Assisted Living appeals to families seeking a more intimate yet established senior living option. However, interested families are advised to carefully consider the pattern of regulatory findings in recent years, particularly around medication management and staff training, when making a placement decision.