By Jacqueline Kimball
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

Erickson residents choose their home styles based on all kinds of criteria. On-the-go folks who spend little time at home opt for one-bedroom abodes. Those with hobbies that call for rooms of their own choose a two-bedroom address.

Sense of spaciousness
At Erickson’s Hickory Chase community, the Pendleton will provide a second bedroom, two full baths, and a balcony. And it feels even more spacious because its kitchen is open to both the foyer and the living room. That feature, plus the balcony, appealed to future resident Mary Green, who reserved her Pendleton last fall.

"I’m used to openness in my house so I like that the kitchen isn’t enclosed," says Green.

An artist’s studio
At Erickson’s Sedgebrook community near Chicago, water colorist Jean Fraher lives in a Kingston apartment home. It’s a twin to the Pendleton.

Fraher, like Green, was attracted by the balcony; it replicated a feature of her previous house. There, Fraher had an artist’s studio that opened onto a deck. "So," she says, "at Sedgebrook I had to be able to open a door—like in my studio—and step outside. That’s such a good feeling!"

Room for company
When she talked with the Tribune last November, Fraher was still unpacking and marveling at the space in her second bedroom, now her studio/guest room. She’s furnished it with a trundle bed, a small antique chest, a side table for art supplies, a file cabinet, and her working art table set up in front of the window. An ample closet stores more supplies plus a card table and chairs.

"My daughter and I looked at a number of retirement communities in the area but came back to this one because the rooms are so much larger. Plus, I couldn’t live in a place that has little windows in the bedrooms. These rooms are flooded with light because of their large windows."