Repositioning project creates connectivity for residents, visitors

Business Situation

Rolling Green Village, a Life Plan Community in Greenville, South Carolina, and LCS Development have collaborated since 2009. For more than a decade, LCS Development has managed the community’s projects and revisits the master plan at the completion of each phase. The master plan has evolved with the community’s needs and is an important guide to identify the scope of work for the multi-phased project. The most recent phase opened in October of 2020; the expansion project added 60 independent living apartments and 23 cottages to meet the community’s market demand. An in-house team of architects, designers and construction managers coordinated the ambitious project while also solving residents’ requests for a deeper line-up of amenities, expanded dining options and a greater sense of community.

Business Solution

The clubhouse and new main entrance were intentionally designed to create a “town square” feel to provide residents, team members and visitors their much-desired sense of community. The clubhouse is centrally located between the existing and new independent living units. The location of these amenities makes the dining and activity functions truly common to all residents, minimizing walking distances for the residents. Creating a more walkable community and promoting multiple indoor and outdoor dining options were important considerations for this expansion project.

The expanded dining experience includes:

• Casual dining (two areas)
• Flex dining
• Private dining
• Piano lounge
• Formal dining area

In keeping with its high standards of excellence, Rolling Green Village focused on making the culinary experience top-notch with the addition of multiple dining venues, a central kitchen, and a demonstration/display kitchen. The new options took into consideration residents’ input in having a dining space with a modern look and feel.

Inspiration for the dining options and their design came from the Greenville culture. The quaint, yet progressive, city offers more than 100 bistros, cafes, wine bars, and restaurants owned by nationally renowned chefs.

The dining expansion creates a variety of spaces where choice is abundant — from venue to food to seating choice. The larger spaces are subdivided and feature design elements to provide interest, function, and evoke a feeling that rivals any upscale restaurant in downtown Greenville.

As much as improving the dining experience was a goal, so was extending the pre-dining and post-dining experience. In staying true to the concept of multifunctional planning, the design team created the piano lounge, bistro, and billiards/game area to offer residents comfort, flexibility and fun. This provides residents opportunities to socialize and interact with their neighbors before or after a meal.

Positive Outcomes

The carefully studied design approach for this project integrates more contemporary elements that complement the existing traditional architectural features throughout the community. As a result, the exterior of the expansion blends seamlessly with existing campus buildings while offering a fresh and modern design. Use of similar brick and compatible colors provides aesthetic continuity to the external facade.

The thoughtful design of the project successfully created the “heart” of Rolling Green Village by integrating its clubhouse and expanded dining venues. Residents, staff and visitors now enjoy connectivity and opportunities for engagement through intentional placement of buildings and pathways. The expansion was enthusiastically received by residents and prospective residents are impressed.

The Rolling Green Village project earned a third-place award in the repositioning/enhancement category of the 2020 Architecture & Design Awards sponsored by national trade publication Senior Housing News.

The 175-acre campus of Rolling Green Village is located near downtown Greenville and is nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The campus sits on former farmland donated more than 30 years ago by Greenville residents and enjoys a rich history and connection with the local community.