Photos by Hannah Maynard
The Long Beach Senior Arts Colony, one part of a large development at the corner of Anaheim and Long Beach Boulevard, is an example of a new wave of affordable housing that not only engages seniors who want to be active in the arts, but aims to create spaces that are largely income-mixed and intergenerational.
The 200-unit building has has captured four awards in a single sweep: the Multifamily Executive Affordable Housing Project of the Year, the Multi-Housing News Award of Excellence Gold Award for Best New Senior Development, PCBC’s 2013 Gold Nugget Grand Award-Winner for best Senior Housing Community, as well as a design award from the American Institute of Architects.
Its concept is rather simple: contemporary, warm spaces that encourage activity in the arts—the now full-occupancy residence provided bonus points to applicants who expressed a direct interest in honing their artistic skill—as well as activity within their neighborhood by generating stakeholders.
The development, largely conceptualized during the Redevelopment days, is a section of multiple land parcels sold to Meta Housing Corporation. In addition to the Arts Colony and the surrounding 15,000 sq. ft. of community space, there are two other major buildings: the now-completed low-income housing complex called The Annex and the soon-to-be realized 12-story market rate housing complex that is designed to draw in Millennial families and working professionals. Each of these spaces are interconnected by community gardens, open spaces, recreational areas, and commercial spaces.
The Colony was largely funded through Prop 1C funds—a state initiative that encourages development that is public transit oriented—because of its location along two of the busiest transit-heavy arterials in Long Beach, Anaheim Street and Long Beach Boulevard. Anaheim is home to the highest number of buses in use within Long Beach Transit’s fleet, while Long Beach Boulevard acts as the Blue Line’s main thrust through the city.
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This mixture of residents of various ages and income levels—set around encouraging the use of public transit and space—is something that Studio One Eleven Principal Michael Bohn finds essential when it comes to creating the urban landscape.
“There should be places to live for everyone of every culture,” said Bohn. “Long gone are the days when we ship our seniors out to pasture. Many of them are still working; many of them are still active; all of them want their minds and bodies to be healthy. And this essentially means interaction with and contribution to society—not being outcast.”
That interaction between active seniors and Millenials could foster a deeper purpose for seniors and a better understanding of generations for the younger crowd. The 99-seat theatre on hand will also be used by LBUSD students, furthering this intergenerational concept into practice.
“We’ve lost that connectivity that makes living socially essential,” Bohn said. “Older generations move to enclaves that separate them from creating a better place to live… It also doesn’t help that we have design that people don’t care about. Bluntly put: if you build crap, all it will do is bring more crap.”
The idiosyncrasies of its design—for example, to make the six-story towers feel less encapsulating while in the courtyard, the top floor was painted a darker chocolate hue, giving the illusion that the sixth floor is actually set back and opens the space—have given the $39M building the moniker of “masterpiece” according to Multifamily Executive.
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