Parmly On The Lake Assisted Lv in Chicago City, MN

Pros

• Parmly is described as a beautiful facility with a leadership team that truly cares about residents.
• The staff at Parmly are wonderful, compassionate, and consistently go above and beyond.
• The center offers engaging daily activities and a home-like atmosphere that residents value.
• Families praise the intake team, social services, nurses, therapists, and dining staff for excellent care.
• The campus provides amenities such as a gym, pool, yoga classes, a chapel, and well-kept grounds by Green Lake.
• Meals are served hot and on a reliable schedule, with several residents praising the food.
• The Parmly community is welcoming and safe, with residents and families feeling supported by caring staff.

Cons

• The nursing staff treated residents horribly and were very mean to patients.
• There is a complete lack of empathy for their patients.
• The room was not cleaned before patient arrival, physician-ordered services were not provided, and patients were left waiting for help for over an hour.
• The administration knows about their failures but has not made changes.
• This place is absolutely horrible, and that barely covers it.
• The facility is short-staffed and there are not enough staff per shift to assist residents.
• The night staff are mean to residents, and belongings are often lost or not returned.
• Laundry is poorly managed, with clothing lost or not recovered.
• Food quality is not great and meals are not served warm.
• Parmly is focused on profit rather than caring for residents; management seems more interested in revenue than people.

Review

Parmly On The Lake Assisted Living is best suited for families that want a campus with real charm: a lakeside setting, walkable grounds, and abundant amenities, paired with an active, socially oriented environment. This community shines for residents who value daily programs, engaging activities, and a sense of hospitality delivered by a leadership team that many families describe as genuinely caring. It is particularly appealing to those seeking transitional care capabilities, strong social services, and a place that can feel like home while a loved one stabilizes or ages in place. Those who need highly consistent, around-the-clock clinical oversight with minimal risk of staffing gaps should proceed with careful due diligence, as the landscape of care delivery here can vary by shift and unit.

The positive case is reinforced by repeated notes about a beautiful, well-maintained campus and a staff that many residents and families praise as kind, capable, and responsive. Families recount excellent experiences with intake, social services, and nursing care, and they applaud the facility for going the extra mile - maintaining a cheerful, helpful atmosphere even in challenging moments. The recreational calendar, fitness options, an on-site chapel, and a visible commitment to therapy and activity programming create a sense of community that many residents come to rely on for day-to-day meaning. Several reviewers specifically commend the social services team for staying on top of care planning and discharge planning, and the staff across the board for being welcoming, patient, and dedicated. For residents who thrive on connection, pace, and a robust amenities set, Parmly can feel like a substantive improvement over more institutional settings.

Yet the picture is not uniformly rosy. A persistent thread across reviews is concern about staffing levels and consistency. Families report shifts where there simply aren't enough hands on deck to meet basic needs, with calls for help going unanswered longer than acceptable and routine tasks slipping through the cracks. There are explicit accusations of neglect and a sense that administration knows there are failures but has not translated awareness into sustained improvements. Communication gaps - between social workers, families, and nurses - led to delayed care conferences and unresolved questions, sometimes during critical moments of transition. In memory care and higher-acuity situations, these gaps can magnify risk, and that is a meaningful drawback to weigh against the campus's many strengths.

Another recurring concern centers on practical day-to-day quality: food that isn't consistently served warm, laundry mismanagement, and rooms that feel dated or not ideal for long-term privacy and comfort. Some reviewers describe bed spaces, bathrooms, and furnishings as worn or suboptimal for long-term living, and they flag inconsistent housekeeping and maintenance. A subset of reviews also questions the facility's prioritization and profitability, with critics alleging that ownership dynamics influence staffing and resource allocation more than resident welfare. Taken together, these factors put a ceiling on Parmly's reliability profile, especially for families prioritizing steady, predictable routines and uncompromised daily care.

Given the mix, families should view Parmly as a landscape of promise tempered by real risk. The quality of care can be excellent when staffing is sufficient and leadership is responsive, and the campus's amenities and social milieu can deliver meaningful quality of life. On the other hand, persistent reports of understaffing, communication failures, and operational gaps mean that risk remains - especially for residents who require consistent turning, timely assistance, or complex medical management. For prospective residents, this means approaching with a detailed diligence plan: tour with specific questions about staffing patterns on day, evening, and night shifts; request recent state inspection findings and follow up on any cited violations; speak with frontline caregivers about daily workflows; and verify that the care plan aligns with current medical needs and personal goals.

Practical due-diligence steps are essential. Schedule a tour with the administration and ask to observe a shift in action, including meal service, therapy sessions, and call-light response times. Speak with multiple staffers across units, and interview residents or family members about routine responsiveness and the consistency of daily care. Review the most recent state inspection reports and any public concerns, then validate that the facility can meet the specific needs of the intended resident - memory care, rehabilitation, or long-term skilled nursing. Clarify what is included in the rate, how therapies are scheduled, and what happens if care needs escalate. Finally, assess the environment beyond marketing photos: does the space support privacy and independence, are shared rooms acceptable, and do the grounds and facilities feel safely maintained?

Ultimately, Parmly On The Lake offers a compelling blend of warmth, activity, and clinical potential, especially for families who place a premium on a beautiful setting and a strong social framework. The strongest verdict comes with the caveat that staffing consistency and proactive leadership are non-negotiable to ensure safety and reliability over time. For families who can tolerate some variability and insist on verifying every facet of care through careful due diligence, Parmly can be a worthy choice. For those needing unwavering, high-touch oversight and uniformly dependable day-to-day life, exploring alternatives with tighter staffing discipline and clearer accountability may be prudent to avoid exposing loved ones to avoidable gaps in care.

This area of Chicago City, Minnesota offers a variety of amenities that can cater to the needs of seniors looking for a convenient and comfortable living environment. With several restaurants, pharmacies, parks, hospitals, places of worship, cafes, physicians' offices, and transportation services located within close proximity, residents can easily access essential services and leisure activities. The presence of reputable healthcare facilities such as Fairview Lakes Health Services and Osceola Medical Center ensures that seniors have access to quality medical care nearby. Additionally, the numerous parks in the area provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and socialization. Overall, this part of Chicago City offers a well-rounded community with all the necessary resources for seniors to lead a fulfilling lifestyle.

Restaurants

• Scooters (1.1 miles)
• Smitty's Bar & Grill (1.1 miles)
• The Northern Lake Tavern & Grill (1.2 miles)
• The Stone Inn (1.2 miles)
• McDonald's (1.4 miles)
• Panda II (1.4 miles)
• Subway (1.7 miles)

Pharmacies

• Chisago Drug (1.1 miles)
• Lindstrom Snyder Drug (2.8 miles)
• Lindstrom Thrifty White Pharmacy (2.8 miles)
• Thirft White (2.8 miles)
• Gordy's Pharmacy (4.1 miles)
• Wyoming Drug (5.7 miles)
• Rolseth Drug (7.2 miles)

Parks

• Chuckie Lundquist Park (1.1 miles)
• Surfland Park (1.4 miles)
• Beach Park (2.6 miles)
• Lyman Park (2.8 miles)
• Ironhorse Railroad Park (3.8 miles)
• Tolzmann Park (5.4 miles)
• Cascade Falls (9 miles)

Hospitals

• Fairview Lakes Health Services (1.9 miles)
• Fairview Lakes Medical Center (6.1 miles)
• Osceola Medical Center (9 miles)
• Ladd Memorial Hospital (9.7 miles)
• Cambridge Medical Center (11.9 miles)

Places of Worship

• Trinity Lutheran Church (2.7 miles)
• Chisago Lake Lutheran Church (4.2 miles)
• St John's Lutheran Church (5.4 miles)
• Real Church Real People (5.9 miles)
• Hosanna Lutheran Church (7.4 miles)
• United Methodist Church (9 miles)
• First Baptist Church of Osceola (10 miles)

Cafes

• Northwoods Roasterie (2.9 miles)
• Caribou Coffee (9.1 miles)
• Coffee Talk (11.7 miles)
• Higher Grounds Cafe (11.7 miles)

Physicians

• Delisi Stephen M MD - Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation (4.5 miles)
• Fairview Sports and Orthopedic Care (6.1 miles)
• St Croix Orthopaedics (6.1 miles)
• Carlos Adams MD (6.1 miles)
• Twin Cities Orthopedics Wyoming (6.2 miles)
• Summit Orthopedics (7.2 miles)
• St Croix Endodontics Pa (7.2 miles)

Transportation

• Enterprise Rent-A-Car (7 miles)
• Dresser Depot (12.2 miles)