Chiara Communities Foundation Acquires Ownership Of Senior Living Operator Capri communities

The Chiara Communities Foundation is acquiring Capri Communities.  

Prior to the acquisition, Chiara owned 25 senior living and affordable housing communities that Capri managed. The planned transaction will add Capri under the Chiara Communities umbrella. 

Capri will continue to manage the Chiara assets in addition to the other 18 senior living and affordable housing properties owned by other third party owners.

In joining Chiara, Waukesha, Wisconsin-based Capri will have access to future growth opportunities, including acquisitions and partnerships that could grow Capri’s portfolio in the years ahead, according to Capri Communities Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing Cindy Robinson.

As part of the acquisition, current Capri President and Chief Financial Officer Kristin Ferge will serve as president and CEO of the organization. Ferge first joined Capri in 2016 and brings nearly 30 years of senior living experience to her new leadership role, having previously worked at Brookdale Senior Living (NYSE: BKD) as executive vice president, chief accounting officer and treasurer.

Today, Capri operates 43 communities in Wisconsin, including 20 senior living campuses and affordable senior housing properties. In 2026, Capri reported strong occupancy, but expense pressure tied to rising IT and energy costs ate into those gains, Ferge said. To improve this, Ferge said Capri is focused on cost management across various areas of operations.

Also this year, Capri implemented new technology to support staff, along with technology geared toward making Capri communities safer for residents. Looking ahead to 2027, Ferge said the focus will be on “fine-tuning” new systems.

With 2026 as “our innovation year,” Capri swapped out its customer relationship management (CRM) platform, changed its health assessment tool and added fall-detection technology to improve resident safety.

“2027 is really going to be grounded in making sure the operators at the local level really understand how to use these systems,” Ferge told Senior Housing News at the 2026 NIC Fall Conference in Chicago. “We don’t want to put any pressure on communities accepting new things, and we’re going to fine-tune those things that we implemented this year.”

Chiara can fuel future growth for Capri

Now fully part of Chiara, Capri Communities will become a nonprofit senior living provider and allow Capri “a lot of opportunity” to grow in the nonprofit senior living space, while also fueling growth through avenues like grant funding, tax-credit financing and opportunities that “don’t exist” for private-pay senior living providers, Ferge said.

The effort goes back to 2017 when the founder of Capri, Jim Tarantino, envisioned the company’s assets eventually becoming part of a nonprofit entity, with value created from the senior living communities funding a foundation, while at the same time the foundation supported the communities that Capri operates, Ferge said. Over the years, Capri has sold 25 of its communities to Chiara, which financed the effort and entered into a long-term management contract with Capri.

In 2024, Tarantino died unexpectedly at the age of 65.

“We decided the best path forward was to sell Capri and the operating platform to Chiara, and we’ve been working on the transaction for the last nine months,” Ferge said.

Now owned by Chiara, Capri is primed for growth, Ferge added.

New growth does not scare us,” Ferge said. “I think down the road, maybe there are some opportunities for acquisitions of like-sized companies similar to Capri.”

The acquisition by Chiara is “groundbreaking” for Capri, preserving Tarantino’s legacy and building a strong foundation for continuing to serve older adults.

Innovative staffing approach improves conditions

Capri takes a unique approach to senior living staffing, offering workers a four-day workweek while compensating them for five, which has improved recruitment and retention of staff. The organization also uses grant dollars to fund “Capri University” to create career development opportunities for staff across departments and communities.

Staffing conditions and metrics like turnover and retention have stabilized which resulted in staffing having “not been a pressure point” when it comes to daily operations.

The organization has strong tenure and retention of sales leaders, executive directors and upper management, Ferge noted.

Going forward, Ferge said it was incumbent upon longtime senior living leaders to “put our hands out to the next generation,” supporting talented and motivated employees in their journey to build long-term careers in senior living. At the same time, colleges and universities offering degree programs involving senior living will help grow the sector’s talent pool, Ferge said.

In the retention of sales leaders, Capri aims to make the selling process collaborative and supportive for those interacting with prospective residents, encouraging teamwork and support rather than downward pressure to sell, Robinson said.

“We give them a lot of freedom to do their jobs, and we solve problems together,” Robinson added.

Looking ahead, Ferge said 2027 will revolve around daily operations and settling into the organization’s new nonprofit ecosystem. Future opportunities for philanthropic efforts are also on the horizon, whether that is offering financially qualified residents rent concessions or paying for employee continuing-education scholarships.

“You’re going to see more activity from us because now we have the balance sheet and some equity behind us,” Ferge added. “We’re going to fulfill what Jim’s vision was.”

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