Des Moines Senior AdvisorStoryPoint Altoona (memory care), at 1600 8th Street SE in Altoona (Polk County), is a dementia-specific assisted living program (ALP/D) certified by the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing under certificate S0450, with a maximum occupancy of 40 units and a certificate current through July 1, 2027.
How large is StoryPoint Altoona (memory care), and is its Iowa certificate current?
Yes. StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) holds a current DIAL certificate as a dementia-specific assisted living program (ALP/D), sized at 40 units, smaller than the 58-unit midpoint of the 39 dementia-specific programs we track in the six counties.
| Field | From DIAL's records |
|---|---|
| DIAL certificate number | S0450 |
| Program type | Dementia-specific assisted living program (ALP/D) |
| First certified | June 1, 2021 |
| Current two-year certificate | July 1, 2025 through July 1, 2027 |
| Maximum occupancy | 40 units |
| Voluntary national accreditation | No; DIAL monitors it directly |
| Administrator on the DIAL record | Nancy Hamilton |
| State fines with exit dates since January 2023 | 1 |
| Months since DIAL's last survey or monitoring | 3.9 (next due July 13, 2028) |
| Phone on the DIAL record | (515) 330-8322 |
Certification in Iowa is tied to one program at one location for two years; the present term opened July 1, 2025. A new owner must notify DIAL before the certificate can transfer, and DIAL may visit within 90 days of a change of ownership.
DIAL dates the first certification to June 1, 2021, about 5 years ago, which places it 62 of 77 by age among the metro's certificates.
How does Iowa regulate dementia care at StoryPoint Altoona (memory care)?
Yes. DIAL certifies StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) as a dementia-specific assisted living program, Iowa's official category for programs that serve tenants with moderate to severe dementia (Global Deterioration Scale stages 4 to 7) or hold themselves out as providing specialized dementia care.
Dementia-specific programs must keep someone awake and on duty 24 hours a day in the proximate area, train all personnel for at least eight hours in dementia care within their first 30 days, and repeat eight hours of training every year for anyone with direct tenant contact.
No fixed ratio applies, which makes the overnight headcount the number to ask for in writing.
The same street address also holds a general assisted living certificate: StoryPoint Altoona (assisted living), so a spouse without dementia can often live in the same community.
The full rules are summarized on our dementia-specific program page.
Has Iowa fined StoryPoint Altoona (memory care)?
Yes. DIAL's Assessed Fines Report lists 1 state fine for StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) from visits ending between January 2023 to November 2026, totaling $1,500 after adjustments; the most recent followed a visit that ended December 18, 2023.
- December 18, 2023 (visit exit date), enforcement no. 10268: $1,500 issued
Iowa reduces a civil penalty by 35 percent when a program waives its right to contest and pays within 30 days, which is why the adjusted amount is often lower than the amount issued. The report does not describe the finding itself; ask the program for the monitoring report and its plan of correction.
Is StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) due for a state monitoring visit?
About 4 months had passed since DIAL's most recent visit to StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) (roughly July 2026) according to the state's Survey Due Report, and the report shows the next visit due by July 13, 2028.
Iowa rules require DIAL to monitor every certified program at least once in each 24-month period (481 IAC 67.10), plus complaint and incident investigations in between. Ask the program for the final report from that visit.
Which certified programs are closest to StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) in Altoona?
The nearest other certified program is Prairie Vista Village in Altoona, about 1.3 miles away as the crow flies, with 68 units and a general certificate.
| Facility | Miles away | Type | Units or beds | State fines since 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prairie Vista Village 2785 1st Avenue South, 50009 | 1.3 | ALP | 68 | 0 |
| Courtyard Estates at Hawthorne Crossing 601 Hawthorne Crossing Dr. SE, 50035 | 3.5 | ALP/D | 78 | 3 |
| Assisted Living at Copper Shores Village 1500 Edgewater Drive, 50327 | 4.2 | ALP | 76 | 1 |
| StoryPoint Pleasant Hill 6151 Martha L Miller Drive, 50327 | 4.2 | ALP/D | 140 | 0 |
| Memory Support at Copper Shores Village 1500 Edgewater Drive, 50327 | 4.3 | ALP/D | 28 | 0 |
How far is StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) from a hospital?
StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) is in Altoona, Polk County, and UnityPoint Health Des Moines Iowa Lutheran is the closest general hospital on DIAL's roster, about 7.6 miles away by straight line.
Broadlawns Medical Center is next, roughly 9.2 miles away. Distances are straight-line measurements between mapped points, not driving times.
If nursing care becomes necessary, the two nearest CMS-certified nursing facilities are Prairie Vista Village (0.5 mi; CMS rating 5 of 5) and Altoona Nursing and Rehabilitation Center (0.8 mi; CMS rating 1 of 5).
Which questions matter most at StoryPoint Altoona (memory care)?
Let DIAL's data shape the visit: ask what DIAL found on the visit that ended December 18, 2023 and what changed afterward.
- Request the most recent monitoring or complaint report and the program's response to it.
- Ask which services cost extra as needs rise, and confirm the agreement promises 30 days' written notice of any change.
- Ask how the program handles a tenant who needs two-person transfers or more than 28 hours a week of nursing, the point where Iowa rules usually require a move.
- Ask how many staff are awake inside the program overnight and how the written missing-tenant procedure works.
- Ask whether StoryPoint Altoona (memory care) accepts Elderly Waiver members if savings run out, and what part of the monthly bill the waiver would not cover.
