CBJ Senior Living 2019

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22 April 22 - 28, 2019 Corridor Business Journal A senior community built to keep you WELL The Views Senior Living of Marion takes shape around an innovative new building and wellbeing certification By Dave DeWitte dave@corridorbusiness.com Wellness is a big part of the conversation as new senior communities spring up around the Corridor, but for one community nearing completion in Marion, it’s literally baked into the design, construction, operation and maintenance plans. When The Views Senior Living of Marion opens later this year, residents will dine from a menu with low levels of processed foods and artificial ingredients. They’ll breathe clean, fresh air generated by a hospital-level air filtration and circulation system, and they’ll have ample sunlight in every room. Good hydration will be encouraged from an abundance of water stations, and water quality will be monitored. Cleaning will be done with supplies using no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that could trigger allergies or sensitivities. Employees will also benefit, through accommodations such as fitness equipment in the employee lounge and ergonomically correct workstations. These measures, and many others, will be monitored to achieve and maintain compliance with the WELL Building Institute’s WELL Standard. The 30-unit assisted living portion of The Views of Marion is on track to become the nation’s first assisted living community with the WELL certification. WELL certification has become available only in recent years, and has mostly been used in high-profile projects by prestigious architectural firms. The idea to seek the certification for an assisted living facility arose from Dr. Mik Pietrzak, one of the five managers of The Views Senior Living, which also has communities in Cedar Rapids. One way to understand WELL certification is to compare it with the older and more widely used LEED green building standard, he says, although they often go hand in hand. “WELL is much more focused on the benefits to the occupants rather than What is the WELL Building Standard? The WELL Building Standard is a performance-based system for measuring, certifying and monitoring features of the built environment that impact human health and well-being, through air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort and mind. WELL and LEED certification go hand in hand. While LEED addresses health and wellness, WELL delves further into those topic areas and provides a closer examination of the occupant experience. Today there are five new pilot programs within the WELL Building Standard. While WELL v1 is applicable to commercial and institutional projects, pilot programs are available for retail, multifamily, residential, education, restaurant and commercial kitchen projects. just the concept of sustainability of the community,” said Dr. Pietrzak, an MD and medical educator who specialized in medical facility design at global architectural firm HKS. “LEED is more concerned about your electric bill, and WELL is more concerned about the quality of air in your building. The biggest focus is on the occupant, the staff and the visitors.” WELL certification focuses on seven tenets of health: air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort and mind. The actual standards span more than 300 pages, and cover such seemingly minute details as what kind of coyote repellent can be used on the grounds, and the ratio of water features to square feet of building space. As a proponent of the idea, Dr. Pietrzak said it was incumbent on him to inform his fellow managers of the advantages and costs. From a business standpoint, he said one advantage was to differentiate The Views from the many other senior living communities recruiting residents in the Corridor. “It does take work to explain it to people, but they do latch onto it,” said Angie McClure, director of corporate marketing A wall of windows at the entrance helps The Views of Marion meet the WELL Building Standard requirements for natural daylight, and helps link the interior and exterior environments. PHOTOS DAVE DEWITTE Native Anamosa limestone and wood trim milled from native trees that had to be removed for construction are among building materials in The Views of Marion that link the facility and its residents with their surroundings. Stone surfaces include the curved coffee shop counter and a stone lobby fireplace. and communications for The Views Senior Living. “It makes sense to them.” The Views of Marion is a roughly $20 million continuum of care community located east of Menards and north of Furniture Row at 720 Oakbrook Drive. Assisted living is the only component of the project that is pursuing WELL certification, however the other components, including a 40-bed skilled nursing facility and 34- bed memory care facility, will share many of the same amenities and benefits. Only a handful of other senior living facilities nationwide are pursuing WELL certification, according to Jamie Matos of Delos, the company that developed the standard. They include communities in Colorado, New York and Pennsylvania. No other facility in Iowa besides The Views Senior Living of Marion has sought WELL certification. Pursuing WELL certification increased the overall project cost between 5-10 percent and added a little time to the construction schedule, Dr. Pietrzak said. He expects the paybacks to include things WELL PAGE 36
ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT OF THE CBJ Corridor Business Journal April 22 - 28, 2019 23 The Gardens of Cedar Rapids EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR JENNA GARDNER COMMUNITY RELATIONS DIRECTOR AMY KUBIK-HASLEY A full continuum of care in southwest Cedar Rapids, The Gardens of Cedar Rapids opened in August of 2017 and is proud to be locally owned and managed. The Gardens provide more than just a campus of care. It provides the opportunity for residents to enjoy so many of the things that bring joy to life. “We want to give purpose to those who live here,” said Amy Kubik-Hasley, Community Relations Director for The Gardens. “We want to keep people moving and feeling their best so they can continue to have fun and do what they love. We want to help transition seniors to the next phase of living and take the fear out of that transition.” 5710 Dean Road SW Cedar Rapids IA 52404 (319) 632-1350 facebook.com/thegardenscr www.thegardenscr.com SERVICES: Assisted living, skilled rehabilitation, memory care, long-term care, and outpatient therapy all under one roof. Specializing in a variety of services within one community, The Gardens of Cedar Rapids can guarantee lifetime housing, social activities, chef-prepared meals, and increased levels of care as needs change. Your loved one has the ability to live on one campus for the duration of their future care already figured out which can provide a great level of comfort and peace of mind for families. Prairie Gardens Cooperative will open an independent living option on the same campus in January 2020, which will provide a full campus of care.
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