January 1, 2002 |

Marks, Thomas and Associates, Renaissance Gardens at Greenspring Village

Renaissance Gardens at Greenspring Village – Springfield, Virginia
Marks, Thomas and Associates – Baltimore, Maryland

Type of Facility/Setting: Skilled Nursing and Assisted Living (within a CCRC)

Facility Contact: Barbara Griffith

Firm: Marks, Thomas and Associates, (410) 467-8600

Design Team: Margaret Suit, Director of Care Development (Erickson Retirement Communities); Faith Nevins, Principal; Michael O’Canas, Project Designer (Marks, Thomas and Associates); Karen Zopf, Interior Designer (Hyde Interiors); Fritz Behlin, Landscape Architect (Daft McCune Walker)

Photography: Anne Gummerson, Anne Gummerson Photography; Terry Corbett, Corbett Photography

Resident Capacity: 70 Assisted Living; 92 Skilled Nursing

Space/Resident (sq. ft.): 320 (AL); 220 (SN)

Total Area (sq. ft.): 123,000

Total Cost (excluding land): $16.5 million

Cost/Sq. Ft.: $134.15

Completion: April 2001

The main entry’s porte cochere provides weather protection to residents and visitors who are exiting their cars. The adjacent outdoor porch has limited access, to protect against residents who might wander.

The assisted living units are located on the lower floors for easy access, with skilled nursing units located on the upper floors. Memory boxes are located at each assisted living unit, to enliven the corridor and to serve as a wayfinding measure.

The dining and living rooms with accompanying resident kitchens are adjacent to large, screened porches. These rooms open to the main hallways via interior windows and French doors, allowing plenty of natural light indoors. Welcoming fireplaces, traditional built-in bookcases and planters in the living rooms lessen the institutional feeling. Hidden from view of the commons areas, the nursing and charting rooms are placed discreetly behind shuttered interior openings.

Specific design details include handrails, downplayed as chair rails; wall bumper guards, treated as paneled wood wainscoting; and distinctive pieces of furniture and artwork in common areas that aid in wayfinding without obtrusive or confusing signage.

The brick exterior is softened by the surrounding gardens. The gardens are filled with a large variety of calming fountains, walking paths and sensory plantings, which have strong fragrances or textures and bright colors, to appeal to those who might have diminished senses.

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