Benchmark at South Farms

Is Benchmark at South Farms a licensed assisted living provider in Connecticut?

Yes. Care at Benchmark at South Farms, 645 Saybrook Rd, Middletown, CT 06457, is provided under Connecticut DPH Assisted Living Services Agency license ALSA.0000137, held by BAL Middletown LLC. The license is active and runs to September 30, 2028.

In Connecticut the license belongs to the care agency, not the building. The apartments are a Managed Residential Community that registers with DPH; the ALSA is the entity DPH surveys and can discipline, so its license number is the one to check.

The licensee name on the state record is BAL Middletown LLC. That legal name is what you will find in eLicense and on DPH correspondence, even though families know the community as Benchmark at South Farms.

How long has Benchmark at South Farms held its DPH license?

Benchmark at South Farms's current license was issued December 2, 2008, about 17 years ago, and DPH records show no earlier assisted living license at this address.

That makes it one of the longest continuously licensed agencies in Middlesex County: 4 of the 6 active ALSAs there hold licenses issued before 2010.

Has DPH taken enforcement action against Benchmark at South Farms?

None reported. BAL Middletown LLC does not appear in any DPH Regulatory Action Report from 2022 through 2026 or on DPH's Health Care Facility Regulatory Action Orders page, the two places DPH publishes consent orders, fines and other formal actions.

DPH surveys ALSAs for licensure and investigates complaints, but it does not post routine ALSA inspection reports online; a 2024 legislative audit recommended a public, searchable source for them, and it has not been built. To see the latest survey, ask the agency for its most recent DPH survey letter and any plan of correction. Agencies receive these directly and can share them.

Check the license yourself in the eLicense License Lookup (number 137), and report a concern through DPH's complaint portal.

Does Benchmark at South Farms offer memory care in Middletown?

Yes, according to the operator. Operator lists assisted living and "Mind & Memory Care" (formerly The Village at South Farms). In Connecticut that is the agency's dementia special care unit or program, which requires DPH approval and a signed disclosure for every resident.

Connecticut law (CGS § 19a-562) requires every dementia special care unit to give families a written disclosure covering its philosophy, placement and discharge criteria, staffing ratios and training, the physical setting, activities and extra fees. Ask for it before you tour. Since 2022 each ALSA must also file a list of its units and a staffing plan with DPH (DPH Blast Fax 2022-2).

Care levels checked October 24, 2026 at benchmarkseniorliving.com.

Where is Benchmark at South Farms located in Middletown, CT?

Benchmark at South Farms is at 645 Saybrook Rd, Middletown, CT 06457, in Middlesex County. Hospitals families in Middletown commonly use include Middlesex Health (Middletown) and Hartford Hospital.

Middletown is the Middlesex County hub on the Connecticut River, home to Middlesex Health and Wesleyan University.

1 other licensed assisted living agency operates in Middletown: Luther Ridge at Middletown.

If needs later go beyond assisted living, Middletown has 3 DPH-licensed nursing homes (Highview Healthcare Center DBA Apple Rehab Middletown, Wadsworth Glen Health & Rehab Center, Water's Edge Center for Health and Rehabilitation); see the nursing home list.

Veterans and surviving spouses are served by VA Connecticut (Newington campus) and may qualify for VA Aid & Attendance toward assisted living costs.

How does Benchmark at South Farms compare with other assisted living in Middlesex County?

Benchmark at South Farms is one of 6 licensed Assisted Living Services Agencies in Middlesex County. 3 of them list memory care (0 as dedicated memory care communities), and 1 are mid-renewal on the current DPH record.

Nearby and similar agencies in Middlesex County, from the same DPH records:

*Operator-stated.

How much does Benchmark at South Farms cost per month?

Connecticut does not publish prices for individual assisted living communities, so ask Benchmark at South Farms for its written rate sheet. Across Greater Hartford, this site's 2026 research puts typical assisted living at $6,000–$8,500/mo and memory care at $7,500–$10,000/mo.

Most communities price rent (the MRC apartment) and care (the agency's services) separately, and care is often tiered by hours or points. Get both in writing, and ask what happens to the care fee after a hospital stay or a fall.

HUSKY C Medicaid does not pay assisted living rent. The Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders (CHCPE) can pay for the agency's care services in participating communities; see our CHCPE guide.

What should you ask when touring Benchmark at South Farms?

Ask Benchmark at South Farms for three documents before anything else (its latest DPH survey letter, its rate sheet and the residency agreement), then cover staffing and move-out triggers.

• May we see your dementia special care unit disclosure statement, and when was it last updated?
• Has DPH approved your dementia special care unit or program, and what staffing plan did you file?
• What annual dementia-specific training do direct-care staff complete?
• Which company holds the DPH Assisted Living Services Agency license here, and is it the same company that owns the building?
• What is the full monthly fee for my parent's care level, and what triggers a move to a higher tier?
• How many aides and nurses are on duty overnight, and for how many residents?
• Which care needs would require a move to a nursing home?
• How long have the executive director and the agency's supervisor of assisted living services been in their roles?

Visit twice, once at a meal. If problems come up after move-in, the CT Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program advocates for assisted living residents as well as nursing home residents.

How does moving into Benchmark at South Farms work?

Before move-in, Benchmark at South Farms's assisted living agency must assess your parent and set a written service plan, then reassess at least every 120 days or sooner if needs change.

• Housing and care terms. The Managed Residential Community's residency agreement covers the apartment and the ALSA's terms cover care; they may be one document or two. Read the admission, discharge and fee-increase terms before paying a deposit.
• Memory care admission. Placement in Benchmark at South Farms's dementia special care unit follows the criteria in its written disclosure; ask how a resident moves between assisted living and memory care, and what that does to the monthly fee.
• Medications. Find out whether your parent will self-administer, get help from certified aides, or have a nurse give medications, since that changes both care and cost.
• Payment. Rent is private pay; long-term care insurance, VA Aid & Attendance and, in participating communities, CHCPE can offset the care portion.

If Benchmark at South Farms has no opening, ask to join its waitlist and keep touring; availability across the Capitol Region changes month to month.

Frequently asked questions