Memory Care Center, Willow Valley Communities
Architect: NORD Architects
Location: Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Type: Healthcare
Year: 2023
Images: NORD Architects, KVANT-1
The following description is courtesy of the architects. Combining design knowledge and an innovative healthcare approach leads us to envisioning solutions to the global demographic crisis that entails both a rising number of elderly and people with dementia. Rethinking healthcare architecture for people with dementia requires commitment and expertise from several sides. The new Memory Care Center in Lancaster is a prime example of just this type of collaboration.
NORD Architects is designing a new dementia care facility in the US for Willow Valley Communities, which develops and operates health care facilities for elderly people in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA. The Willow Valley Communities is a driven developer and health care advocate with ambitions to push the boundaries for dementia care and enhance the quality of life for people affected directly or indirectly by dementia.
Willow Valley Communities is developing facilities where traditional standards in the healthcare system are challenged to find innovative solutions for the rapidly increasing number of elderly people. Globally, the number of people over 65 years old is projected to more than double from 761 million in 2021 to 1.6 billion in 2050.1 Projections for the number of people with dementia are equally alarming, where the estimated 70 million in 2025 is expected to rise to approximately 150 million in 2050.
The new Memory Care Center in Pennsylvania is a specialized dementia care facility with 140 dementia units in a center designed for active communities, focusing on individual care, integration with the local area, forming new partnerships, and engaging in dementia research. There’s a ‘Brain Café’ that welcomes visitors from outside the center. It acts as a resource center that includes several volunteers as well as a research- and knowledge center for neurologists, neuropsychologists and other research personnel.
Willow Valley Communities chose NORD Architects because “they have developed several memory care and healthcare communities that challenge the traditional standards for care homes. With each project, they continue to raise the bar and design spaces that adapt to the needs and routines of the people who will live and work there”, Willow Valley wrote in the press release revealing their choice of architect.
“It’s a bit of a dream scenario that such an ambitious client would just call us and ask if we’d be interested in designing a groundbreaking dementia facility because they consider us international experts in the field. We quickly established that there was a shared ambition between us to innovate dementia care architecture and enhance the quality of life for people affected by dementia. This project fits well with the other care facilities we have designed in recent years, including France’s first dementia care home in Dax and a dementia care home in Oslo,” says Morten Rask Gregersen from NORD Architects.
Dementia Design, Flexibility and Welfare Technology
The design of the new center is based on principles of flexibility, variation, and inclusion. The architecture is tailored to the local context, offering ample opportunities to experience an active daily life with other residents or visitors, while also providing quiet and recreational environments.
Willow Valley Communities envisions creating open communities that enhance dementia care and treatment, knowledge about the disease, respect for those affected by dementia, and prevention – or delay – of the disease. The design also integrates several welfare technology solutions that enhance experiences for residents, family members, and staff.
The Memory Care Center is expected to break ground in the spring of 2024 and to open at the end of 2025.
Project Details
- Project name: Memory Care Center, Willow Valley Communities
- Location: Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA
- Architects: NORD Architects (EGA Architects are local architects)
- Client: Willow Valley Communities
- Size: 14.000 m2
- Year: 2023-2025 (expected to open at the end of 2025)
