Projects
Village at Penn State – Palmer Park
State College, PA
Hospitality was the focus of this project, which implemented long-anticipated updates to the community center and outdoor amenities for this University Based Retirement Community (UBRC). Opened in 2004, the Village at Penn State had not implemented planned second phase additions until after merging with Liberty Lutheran Services in 2012.
A Unique Partnership Creates Palmer Park Outdoor Amenities
Palmer Park is a first-of-its kind fully landscaped park and gardens, featuring professionally contoured golf putting and practice areas, a village green and a multi-purpose area. Designed and completed by the Arnold Palmer Design Company, Palmer Park includes a nine-hole putting course plus a couple of additional holes that bear all the aspects and storied history of the Arnold Palmer signature brand. The synthetic green requires less maintenance than grass, particularly factoring in the region’s sometimes challenging weather conditions.
Palmer Park is complemented by adjacent gardens, walkways and a bistro terrace for al fresco dining. The terrace features a pergola system for sun control as well as outdoor dining and fire pit seating. The park includes a grass lawn area for natural wellness activities such as croquet and yoga, or special events; a town-square type clock; and a bocce court.
Implementing Phase 2 Community Center Additions
The community center was designed in Phase 1 to function effectively when the Village opened, but was planned from the start to be reoriented and expanded as the community grew. The expansion provides a centralized community hub that creates the desired entry experience and connects resident living spaces with amenities and services.
A new entry drive and porte cochere lead into the commons addition which includes a new main lobby, reception, and marketing suite. The existing library was renovated to expand views from the lobby towards Penn State University’s neighboring Beaver Stadium. Additionally, existing corridors received fresh finishes, and the former multi-purpose space and creamery have become the bistro, a new casual dining option featuring a hearth oven and display cooking.
The final piece of the puzzle is a new one-story, 6,200 SF community building. At the center of this building is a 165 seat multipurpose auditorium with raised stage to host, among other things, on-site Road Scholar classes and Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) classes. This community gathering space also serves as a conditioned connector between the existing skilled care building, personal care household and the rest of the Village at Penn State community. Other than the cottages on the perimeter of the campus, all buildings are now connected as a result of this community building addition.
Pleasant View Communities – Hearth and Harrow
Manheim, PA
Bring In Outside Community
Renovation of a former café created Health and Harrow—a restaurant, private dining room, bistro, coffee bar, and outdoor patio—to enhance campus life and help to bring the outside community into Pleasant View. This not only provides an additional dining venue for a town that has limited restaurant options, but the extra income also helps to maintain – and even increase – Pleasant View’s benevolence to its residents.
Outdoor Connections
Large storefront windows replace bay windows and a rarely used vestibule just off the patio has been repurposed as two dining alcoves in the front of the bistro. Outdoor connections are highlighted with expanded windows, many with sills less than a foot above the ground, patio dining with a variety of seating options, and a renovated fountain featuring work by a local sculptor.
Farm-to-Table
Hearth and Harrow highlights its local agrarian setting via hand-cut local tiles, local art, textured glass panels from a local glass supplier, reclaimed barn wood, and Edison bulbs inspired by nearby family farms. The name highlights the signature hearth feature and connects back to Pleasant View’s heritage of the family farm reflecting an operational goal to partner with local, Lancaster County food vendors and bring the Farm-to-Table movement to the community.
Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
Patriots Colony – Presidents Pavilion Hybrid Homes
Williamsburg, VA
Presidents Pavilion, a three-building hybrid homes™ apartment complex, is the first phase of a multi-year independent living expansion. Each building is five stories tall with covered parking as the first story. The hybrid homes incorporate a traditional brick-accented exterior to blend seamlessly into Patriots Colony’s stately Colonial Williamsburg architecture. Three distinct layouts for the 60 individual residences feature open floor plans, a master suite with a walk-in closet, full-size washer and dryers, patios and covered balconies.
Renovations to the community center focused on dining updates to provide a contemporary experience and accommodate additional residents. Casual dining, including a bistro with display kitchen and pub, were expanded and formal full-service dining received a more intimate restaurant space. An outdoor patio area was expanded to provide for al fresco dining and incorporated a new pavilion, fire pit and outdoor grilling area.
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Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
Brandermill Woods
Midlothian, VA
The 2011 master plan included renovation and additions to the Clubhouse at Brandermill Woods which allowed the community to enhance their independent living common areas by offering additional amenities that appeal to the incoming Baby Boomers and their families. No longer will a single dining venue, chapel, and stereotypical shuffleboard court be considered enough to sustain and entertain residents. Instead, the new Clubhouse amenities include a theater, party room, game room, formal dining, club room, four-season room, private dining, bistro, multi-purpose space, chapel, fitness room, aerobics room, clinic, pool, terrace dining, private garden, and greenhouse and extensive spaces meant to both support the current cottage and apartment residents and also entice future residents to choose Brandermill Woods as their home. At the same time, 93 new independent living apartments were built adjacent to the new Clubhouse offering residents additional housing options with direct access to the clubhouse.
Photo credit: Nathan Cox Photography
Charlestown Community
Catonsville, MD
Designed to capture the spirit of a downtown marketplace, this renovated 4,100 square foot café space features a large A-frame roof with 17-foot ceilings. Features include display cooking stations, a bar/lounge and patio dining space. Exposed red brick walls with high window sills pay homage to nearby Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The project doubled the capacity to 96 people with a variety of seating options.
Awards: Environments for Aging Remodel/Renovation Competition Winner
Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
Meadowood
Worcester, PA
Community center updates on the entry floor focused on dining updates to increase capacity while simultaneously breaking down the scale and creating distinctive, differentiated experiences. This included introduction of bistro, pop up dining and exhibition cooking. On the lower level, the design expands the aerobics classroom, rehabilitation suite and aquatics areas. The new pool accommodates multiple configurations for lap lanes, shallow water exercise, water volleyball and deep water exercise. Outdoor connections and sustainable strategies are seamlessly integrated into the design solutions. The underutilized courtyard was transformed into a new campus amenity to create engaging outdoor event spaces to complement and enhance the dining and wellness updates.
Awards: Publication in Environments for Aging Design Showcase
Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
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Rose Villa
Portland, OR
New Main Street amenities include a performing arts center, newsroom, bistro café, garden nursery, full service salon, wellness center, pool and spa, all have been designed to look and operate as individually branded businesses. The aquatics component includes a lazy river and water slide, as well as lanes for lap swimming. Fully operable garage doors allow portions of the bistro to provide open air seating along Main Street.
Awards: Publication in Environments for Aging Design Showcase
Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
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Edenwald
Towson, MD
The contemporary café design is more open than its predecessor and allows for greater circulation space between the food offerings. The resulting design took cues from a local farmers market, focusing on fresh foods (some locally sourced during the summer) and a wide range of options. New to the café are a coffee shop, Grab-N-Go offerings, and a pizza station, which complement a salad bar, deli, and hot entrée station. Another new dining experience to be offered is a patio dining component.
Awards: Publication in Environments for Aging Design Showcase
Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
Woodcrest Villa, Viva Centre
Lancaster, PA
Viva, often translated to “long live,” is an apt description for this welcome center focused on vitality and community engagement. Feathered into a hillside between existing apartment wings, this expansion more than doubled the size of the community center. The welcome center at the main entrance features a two-story lobby and pre-gathering area outside the new 300-person performing arts center. The fitness components of the wellness center include an aquatics center with lap pool and warm water therapy spa, a fitness classroom, cardio equipment room and lockers with changing rooms. The upper level includes a bistro, beauty shop, theater, billiards and terrace with dining grill area and bocce courts.
Awards: Publication in Environments for Aging Design Showcase
Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography
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The Lutheran Community at Telford
Telford, PA
This replacement health care center includes a first floor 23-bed memory support unit, while the top three floors are each home to 25 skilled nursing residents. The new center creates an intimate grouping of rooms arranged in small neighborhoods. Meals are offered in small-scale dining rooms with country kitchens that include counter seating. Covered porches accommodate seasonal outdoor dining and activities. Semi-private rooms are separated by a full privacy wall and all resident rooms include a private bath with roll-in shower.
Photo Credit: Larry Lefever Photography