Kverndalen residential and day centre is a care home of 18,000 m2 with 128 full-day places and 30 day places, where KHR Architecture has been the architectural consultant. The ambition is for the site to contribute to the development of the northern part of Skien, and citizens and users have been involved through workshops. Through cultural and social activities, residents of the area will be invited in, so that the new care centre will also become a meeting place in the city.
Skiing
Norway
Municipality of Skåne, Eiendomsenheten
2022
18 000 m2
369 million. DKK
Passive House Standard
Børve Borchsenius Arkitekter AS, Sweco Norge AS, Dronninga Landskab AS, Grunnteknikk
Architectural consultancy
A meeting place in the district
The care home is located close to the neighbourhood's parks, streets, shops and traffic hubs, allowing the care home to be an integral part of the city's neighbourhood, where residents and people from the surrounding area are invited to use the activity room and outdoor area on an equal footing.
The day centre will also support the initiative "Den Kulturelle Spadserstok", which aims to bring professional art and culture to the elderly. In this way, the aim is to turn the care centre into a meeting place in the city.
Inspiring, inviting and stimulating as a guideline for the device
The care home is designed with a focus on materials and colours that are "inspiring, inviting and stimulating". All colours and materials are chosen based on knowledge of which moods and shades are appropriate for the resident group, as well as the idea of establishing a sense of identity and simple wayfinding so that residents can easily orientate themselves and find their way around, while feeling at home. All the colours chosen refer to nature, which has been proven to have a positive effect on human wellbeing.
A care home with 16 smaller units
The care home has approximately 120 inpatient beds and 30 day places. Each living unit consists of 8 rooms with communal dining and living room, with access to an outdoor area. This creates a manageable smaller community within the larger one. The individual homes have extra-large living areas that can be used as double rooms for married couples, for example.
Kverndalen residential and day centre also has common areas, various activity rooms, a large living room, conference room, meeting rooms and offices.
"The client wants a care home where welfare technology and digital solutions can be used to the full. These are rapidly evolving areas, so creating an architecture and technical infrastructure that accommodates a single implementation of the solutions the future will bring has been crucial."
Pernille Haslund-Christensen, architect
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