Construction is well underway at Riverside Sanders Retirement Community in Gloucester for two "small houses" that corporate officials said will each accommodate up to 20 residents in a home-style format when the units open this fall.

Rudy Heinatz, executive director of the Sanders complex, said construction should be completed in October, with residents being relocated from the 50-year-old Sanders nursing home a short distance away to the new houses in November. The houses front onto an unnamed street off Main Street and connect in the back to other Sanders facilities on Walker Avenue.

The houses will include all new furnishings and medical equipment, Heinatz said, and the total project carries an $8 million price tag. Most residents are excited about the new accommodations, he said.

Riverside officials toured a number of senior houses before coming up with its plans for the Gloucester project, Heinatz said. Among facilities visited were those in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Pennsylva...