Meadowood is a continuing care retirement community in Worcester, PA founded by the Scwenkefelter Church to provide quality housing and lifestyle choices for seniors. The existing facility consists of both apartments and courtyard style housing units connected with covered walkways. Common facilities are located in the center of the complex.
The project introduces a new housing type to the facility. The Carriage Homes are detached homes with garages. They are geared to the younger, more active retirees, an emerging part of the retirement market.
The project consists of forty homes. They are arranged around three major open spaces to take advantage of the lush suburban landscape of Montgomery County. A pedestrian walkway links the open spaces of the Carriage Home Development with the network of covered walkways and open space in the existing community.
There are four distinct house types each with several possible variations. The goal is to provide the framework for a real community united and diverse. The house designs evoke the English cottage aesthetic of the arts & crafts movement of the late 19th Century. Our research indicated that this picturesque imagery had positive associations for the potential residents and was sympathetic to the regional traditions of the Philadelphia suburbs with notable exponents such as Walter Durham and William Price.
While the exterior of the houses have historic connotations, the interior are designed to be functional with a modern sensibility. Open flowing spaces with abundant natural light provide an uplifting quality. Views into the landscape are optimized. The focal point of each house is a double height living/dining area adjacent to an open kitchen. This acts as the major public space of a house designed for living.
The Ashton model has a first floor living area of 1937 SF and a second floor living area of 610 SF. A small porch leads one into a two story foyer and then into the two story great room. The bedroom suites are on the opposite side of the main living space adjacent to the garage.
