JRP Architects was privileged to attend the Eighth Annual Senior Housing Northeast Conference, and the content served to reinforce our dedication to the importance of rethinking how we approach senior housing. Unlike as in the past, seniors today are no longer a sedentary population merely looking for a comfortable and safe residence to live out the end of their lives. Seniors now are looking for residences that offer a physically and socially active lifestyle in environment that reflects contemporary updates in aesthetically pleasing surroundings. They want to continue to live their best lives!

New projects and adaptive re-use will require a new mindset as designs are being developed, but one of the most immediate needs is for refreshing senior housing projects built in the previous decades. Small living spaces, tight kitchens, and dark, outdated common rooms need to be rethought and adapted; even relatively small changes can make a huge difference in the lives of the residents in a senior community.

The before and after photos below demonstrate how some simple changes in interior design and additions to enlarge spaces have refreshed an Active-Adult clubhouse to better serve contemporary seniors.