Middle Musquodoboit, Nova Scotia
1991
14,140 sq. ft.
Client: Braeside Home for Special Care
Type: Institutional, New Construction

Awards & Recognition: American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the American Association of Homes for the
Aging (AAHA) 1991-1992 Exhibition of Design for Aging catalog; exhibited at the National Association of Senior
Living Industries' (NASLI) winter meeting (1991), the AIA's National Convention (1992); the AAHA's Annual
Meeting (1992),and the joint AIA/AAHA "Design for Aging" Conference (1992). Included in the 800-page
reference document OlderAmericans Almanac, produced by The University of North Carolina's Center for
Creative Retirement (published by Gale Research.)

The Musquodoboit Valley Home for Special Care serves the rural area of Musquodoboit Valley. It is attached to the existing Musquodoboit Valley Memorial Hospital and shares support services with the Hospital. The Home has 28 beds and 1 respite bed, subdivided into three "neighbourhoods," each providing a particular type of care for the residents who live there.The design responds to the residents' need to have privacy, community, choice and control in their everyday environment. The washrooms have been placed at the exterior wall, rather than the more traditional location along the corridor. This permits the opportunity to interact with the "community zone" by introducing the windows between the room and the corridor. This additional window provides choices in vistas from the bed, creates a second sitting area, and allows the residents to be aware of activity in the corridor, while still maintaining privacy and serenity.

By providing a place within the room for residents to display memorabilia, the "porch" alcove window makes each room identifiable from the corridor, much like a home is recognizable from the neighborhood sidewalk. The configuration of the windows also provides variety in the "streetscape" of corridor and increased visibility of residents for care-givers.

This project was selected by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the American Association of Homes for the Aging (AAHA) for inclusion in their 1991-1992 Exhibition of Design for Aging. The project has been displayed at conventions in various locations throughout the United States including San Francisco, Orlando, and other locations on the AIA and AAHA convention circuit. The project was published in the 1992 AIA/AAHA Exhibit Catalogue of selected architectural designs for the aging.