Garden Brook Senior Village

Location: Garden Grove, CA
Award Applicant: AO
Architect: AO
Developer: AMG & Associates
General Contractor: Sinanian
Interior Designer: The Pacific Companies
Photographer: Bailey Made
Project Website: https://pwapt.com/gardenbrook/

Project Statement

The opportunity to rejuvenate a community, by adaptively reusing a half-built structure dubbed the “Rusty Skeleton” by locals, is a rare one. The project, originally slated as a mixed-use retail and luxury condominium development, had been abandoned for more than a decade, a magnet for decay and crime in the city. This new adaptive reuse project introduces 394 below-market senior apartments, along with 13,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space and more than 25,000 square feet of community and recreational area.

The mission to transform an unsightly steel frame, visible from the Garden Grove Freeway, into a fresh new gateway for the city calls for innovative planning and design. A retail base with metal awnings is arranged to invite pedestrian traffic to and from the city’s largest mixed-use development across the street, thus expanding the retail core. Engaging geometric configurations and contemporary materials are employed, creating a set of shifting planes within striking frames. Intelligent proportions, varied parapet heights, and horizontal bands of balconies enhance visual interest while mitigating the building’s height. Metal grills, organic screens, colored Plexiglas, and bold accent colors formulate a modern residential ambiance. The residential units boast full kitchens and bathrooms, large living areas, and ample storage, while four outdoor courtyards encourage mingling and active pastimes.

This senior affordable project provides an opportunity for intergenerational engagement in the community to foster mutually beneficial youth and senior interactions. A long-awaited renewal for this diverse community, Garden Brook hosts an affordable and quality place of residence for ages 65+ connected to stimulating amenities and future retail in an energetic commercial corridor, mutually benefiting the generations to come.