Baby Boomers are coming of age!
Born between 1945 and 1965 and therefore reaching the age of 65 from 2011 onwards, the Baby Boomers are either considering their transitioning out of the workforce into retirement or are already retired. This contemporary generation of ‘seniors’ are typically more financially secure, much more active and live longer than previous generations of retirees and they will expect the best in all aspects of their retirement life. Design, convenience and connectedness to the local community are essential elements for retirees today with the demand for high-end accommodation products in great locations increasing year on year.
Many choose to downsize –
- to realise the capital in their family home to supplement their retirement income, for travel and long-term lifestyle
- to eliminate the burden of maintaining a large home and garden
- to be closer to lifestyle amenities and recreational facilities
- to benefit from the increased security, convenience and maintenance offered
After retirement, traditionally the main living choices for seniors have been to:
- Remain in the family home and utilise community services (home help), family and other support mechanisms as needed
- Move in with family; the quintessentially Australian Granny Flat
- Low rise retirement villages and aged care facilities
While the traditional retirement village concept remains appealing to some, there’s a growing trend for multi-storey, mixed use developments designed to provide retirees with a mixture of companionship, activities, security, support and easy access to the community. Many such developments are already in existence, combining modern low-maintenance residential accommodation with mixed uses such as leisure and common areas, shops and restaurants. This high density development model affords itself to be more centrally located in cities or towns than the traditionally lower density retirement villages.
Innovative concepts support prolonged independent living with provision in some developments for additional on-site support services and higher levels of care as people age. This is commonly termed ‘aging in place.’ Most projects include stand-alone serviced apartments and higher-care rooms which offer different levels of staffing, interventions and management. Intelligent design will allow facilities to be run separately. For example, the higher-care/nursing facilities might be operated by a different company to the over-50s independent living residences, however remain on-site and retain the same architectural look and ambience. Other complementary land uses and commercial leases can be successfully included in these mixed use developments, such as medical centres, fitness clubs and chemists – uses with reciprocal social and economic benefits.
As the Gold Coast’s leading Commercial, Industrial & Residential Architects, HHH Architects’ reputation for excellence has been built on many successful projects throughout Queensland and New South Wales. Our clients benefit from our high-level of knowledge surrounding the design process through to completion and beyond.
One of our current projects is Lendlease’s The Gardens on Lindfield, Helensvale. This project incorporates over 20 years of working partnership with the previous owners who then on-sold the development to Lendlease 4 years ago. This is a great example of a master-planned and staged retirement community including detached dwellings for independent living now diversifying their offer through serviced, luxury apartments, central facilities and better utilising their land to create and curate a successful community with a great ambience. The Gardens on Lindfield provides resort-style living including a health centre, residents lounge and bar, swimming pool, spa and bowling green.
Contact us today, ph. (07) 5528 0088 to discuss how we can partner with you to rethink your retirement village and meet the varied expectations and needs of a new generation of younger, longer-living Baby Boomers or have a chat about the growing trend in our cities for multi-purpose vertical developments including retirement accommodation suitable for demanding downsizers? Give us a call and we’ll explain.
