After partnering with Grand Living on senior living environments in Florida and Iowa—with Ryan managing development, architecture + engineering, construction and capital—it was time to launch our first Texas community. We found an ideal parcel in charming Georgetown, outside Austin, renowned for its retirement lifestyle. However, we wanted to break the mold of a campus with separate buildings for different resident populations, the typical solution to strict state licensing requirements, established to regulate 1970s-era nursing homes. After patiently navigating the process, we won approval for our innovative age-in-place model, enabling seniors to access assisted living, independent living and memory care within the same building.
Additional challenges loomed. The lot featured seven heritage live oaks, so working closely with Georgetown, our architects shaped and bent the design to conserve them. The field team sawed through high regional bedrock, then discovered a karst, necessitating geotechnical and environmental consulting. Having overcome those hurdles, construction went underway on this 210,000-SF, four-story, 180-unit community. Designed to reflect Texas Hill Country vernacular, incorporating cost-effective, handsome local limestone, it also achieves licensing by building with non-combustible, light-gauge steel. When complete, an outdoor pool, putting green and variable refrigerated flow (VRF) system will enhance the resort atmosphere. Other amenities include multiple dining options, a performance theater, grand spa and salon, club room, library and airy screened porches for memory care residents.
