The Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario (ARIDO) has honoured Toronto’s Newcombe Design Associates with an Award of Merit for the 12,500 m², stand-alone, owner-operated, retirement residence, The Williamsburg Uptown, completed in May 2014 in Burlington, Ontario.

By developing 94 independent living suites and 23 assisted living suites, the owners sought to provide a much-needed option for an aging population, in a facility that would go beyond the typical household model to establish a new standard of excellence in the market. Newcombe Design Associates’ goal was to ensure that every aspect of the interiors would elevate the residents’ quality of life and contribute to a strong sense of community.

Judy Newcombe, Principal, says that, in addition to being recognized by ARIDO, two key operational statistics demonstrate the success of her firm’s approach:

1) Where the standard expectation is fill up within 2 years, The Williamsburg was 70% full after only 9 months, and,

2) There are higher than expected numbers of couples and younger move-ins, both of which have positive bottom line impact in both the short and long term.

“Our attention to detail was vitally important in bringing the owners’ vision to life, creating the hospitality, warmth, and upscale comfort that they hoped to provide their residents,” said Newcombe, “For example, one of the key objectives was to foster residents’ independence and sense of control over their own lives. The owner knew that offering a variety of venues where residents can dine at their leisure would contribute to such feelings. We knew that by creating a variety of dining styles with the range of seating options not typically used in retirement residences, but in high-end resorts or hotels, we could enhance them further.”

Another Newcombe goal was to overcome what is often a stumbling block for seniors who have left their old neighbourhood for an unfamiliar way of living: a tendency towards isolation. Their planning and design established an in-building neighbourhood, with easy to maneuver, simple to understand navigation encouraging and facilitating social interaction. In fact, Williamsburg has proven to be a genuine and fast-growing community, with the residents actively enjoying every amenity.

About Newcombe Design Associates

One of Canada’s leaders in healthcare design, for nearly 25 years Newcombe Design Associates has provided a full range of interior design for specialized environments. The firm is known for expertise in meeting the complex needs of people with perceptual, cognitive and mobility challenges, as well as in-depth knowledge of the wide range of products that meet the specialized needs of healthcare facilities.

Whether developing or renovating long term or acute care hospital, mental health centres, clinical practices and laboratories, retirement homes or seniors housing, Newcombe’s clients benefit from the firm’s ability to work with multiple stakeholders to create highly functional and supportive environments.

– Name of project: The Williamsburg Uptown, Seniors Living

– Location: Burlington, Ontario

– Client: Sean Hourigan and Kelly Hourigan

– Architects: Michael Spaziani Architect Inc

– Designers: Newcombe Design Associates

– Engineers: EXP

– Contractors: Percon Construction

– Lighting design: E-Lumen International

– Area of project: 12,542 square metres

– Project end date: May, 2014

– Photographer: David Whittaker