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Serenity Court was designed to meet the special needs of those very ill and dying
due to AIDS. The need for quiet, restful environment was a primary
concern. Each resident room has a window that faces into the
garden courtyard, permitting a connection to nature and the passage of
time. The interior, landscaped courtyard is designed to enhance the
daily lives of the residents and staff by integrating daylight and
landscaping into common spaces and resident rooms. A spacious Common
Room provides a place to go that is easily accessible to those who
are wheelchair bound or have impaired mobility, but have the will to
remain active and engaged in life. The residents have varying
degrees of mobility, therefore the design is fully ADA accessible.
Each resident room has a private room with a separate bath,
toilet and sink. Shared spaces include shower and laundry facilities,
kitchen, dining room, common room, meditation room, and an interior
courtyard. In these areas, features such as counter height, locations of
switches, turning space and access to storage areas are tailored to the
physical challenges of people confined to wheelchairs.
Design Considerations
Comradeship and
solitude
We all need comradeship, most of all when faced with the challenge
of living with AIDS. The building provides an opportunity to share
experience with those living within and outside of the home. The
living room, the kitchen and dining room, a sunny shared courtyard, and
even hallway spaces are places of opportunity for interactions of
support and care. As well, the need for solitude is especially
important. Residents need time to be alone, to rest and gather strength.
The bedrooms, baths, and meditation room are peaceful places for
privacy.
Interaction
A key need of the seriously ill and dying individual is to feel a part of the
larger world. Isolation is something the residents work against - as
they prepare to leave this world, they don't necessarily want to feel
cut off from life around them. An outdoor porch, a vantage point from
which to survey the life around them, is an important feature of
Serenity Court.
A place to visit:
Of critical value to the life of the home are visitors: friends,
family, caregivers and volunteers. Serenity Court provides spaces for visitors
to park securely, visit privately in residents' rooms, a visitors'
bathroom, and secluded spaces (mediation room, porch, courtyard) for
quiet visitation.
A healthy building:
AIDS usually brings many challenging side effects. As the immune
system is compromised, residents are susceptible to infection and
irritations from a variety of sources. With the design of Serenity
Court, we
have created an interior environment that is easy to clean and maintain
germ free to promote a healthy and energy efficient environment that
employs the best principles of "green" design. The engineering
approach incorporates features that allow safe, sanitary, and energy
efficient maintenance and utility.
The Guest Room for visits with Friends & Family
A view of the interior courtyard from
the front lobby reception area.
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Front view of
Serenity Court at 1221 N. 19th Street
The Front Lobby Entry
The Community Room (living & dining rooms)
The Nurses' Station
The Kitchen
One of the nine private resident bedrooms
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