For people with dementia, daily life in care can shrink fast. A new project in Wisconsin is trying to push it open again.
The nation’s first dementia village is planned for Madison, with Agrace, a nonprofit healthcare agency, leading the $40 million development. The project will cover six acres and is slated to open in 2027, according to a news release.
Agrace said the community is modeled on European “microtowns” designed for people living with memory loss. The Madison site will have a Main Street-style layout with shops, a theater, and an arts and crafts center.
“All too often, when someone enters memory care, their life gets smaller, and the way each day unfolds is regimented and uniform,” said Lynne Sexten, president and CEO of Agrace.
“We want to give those people back their autonomy,” she said.
The project comes as the United States faces a growing number of older adults with dementia. The Alzheimer’s Association estimates 7.2 million Americans age 65 and older are living with significant memory loss.
Agrace’s village is expected to include eight households. Each one will have private bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, shared kitchens, and shared living spaces. The exteriors will also have front porches.
“We are building a Main Street that looks familiar to the type of downtown you see in so many Wisconsin communities, but also in towns throughout the country,” Sexten told Fox News Digital.
The village is meant to move away from the tightly structured routine often linked with nursing homes. Sexten said residents should have room to decide how they want to spend their day.
A resident may think, “I was supposed to go to play Mahjong today, but instead I feel like just sitting around and reading the newspaper or working on a puzzle,” Sexten said.
The village is expected to house up to 65 full-time residents. It will also be open to 40 to 50 adults with dementia who live at home and want to take part in activities. Specially trained caregivers will have private apartments in the village as well.
Agrace said residents will be able to use the village much like a small town. “Residents will be able to buy food from the store, take part in menu planning for their household and even participate in meal preparation,” Sexten said.
The development draws heavily from a dementia village in the Netherlands called the Hogeweyk, in the Amsterdam suburb of Weesp. Agrace described that site as widely seen as highly successful.
The Hogeweyk opened in 2009 and spans four acres. According to its website, it works to “emancipate people living with dementia and include them in society.” Funded by the Dutch government, the community serves 188 residents across 27 houses. The model differs sharply from traditional nursing homes.
Other companies in the United States have tried to copy the idea, including a proposed village in Holmdel, New Jersey, but Agrace said there are currently no close contenders.
Sexten said residents in Wisconsin “will pay monthly rates comparable to what they would otherwise pay at memory care facilities.” She also said Agrace has an endowment to help offset costs for people who cannot cover the full expense.
Prospective residents will likely be able to apply in the first quarter of 2027, according to Agrace.
The dementia village model has drawn praise and criticism. Some people see it as an appealing alternative to standard memory care. Some critics question the idea of building a separate environment that recreates familiar routines.
“Critics have drawn parallels with the deception depicted in the 1998 ‘social science fiction’ film ‘The Truman Show’; but many Alzheimer’s experts have praised [the Hogeweyk] for being the first to adjust ‘our’ reality to allow those with dementia to be in a safe and comforting environment,” wrote Dr. Fay Niker, a member of the Neuroethics Collective in British Columbia.
Dementia villages in Amsterdam, Norway, France, and Australia recreate familiar settings while removing friction points. One of those is money. At the grocery store checkout in Madison, no money will change hands.
Some villages use “play money” to keep the experience familiar. Agrace does not currently plan to use any money.
Residents will be allowed to leave the village with family members, but most medical care will be provided by Agrace. “When more specialized care is needed, our team will refer them as necessary,” Sexten said.
The push to rethink memory care comes as dementia rates continue to rise globally. Alzheimer’s Disease International said more than 55 million people worldwide are living with dementia. The group projects that total will nearly double every 20 years, reaching 78 million by 2030 and 139 million by 2050.
Sheryl Zimmerman, director of the National Center for Excellence in Assisted Living, said residential care settings have increasingly been moving toward a sense of “household.” She told Fox News Digital that before the Wisconsin village opens, and without data, it cannot be confirmed that the model will restore autonomy and spontaneity.
“But they are very much the characteristics that people value throughout their lifespan.”
📸 credit: The Hogeweyk
