Irvington Senior Housing is a 4-story supportive housing development with 104 units in Fremont California. On the eastside facing Fremont Boulevard, the streetscape is activated with “pop-up”- like retail space, leased to enterprise businesses or operated in an ad-hoc way by residents living in the development. Lush plantings along the emergency vehicular access and Irvington Avenue on the north provide shade and privacy to the adjacent units from the busy urban street. An elegant custom-designed shuttle trellis with wood slats adds a peaceful cover for the senior residents.    
 
At the heart of the project, extending out from the community room from the east and shaded by a grove of trees, a rectangular south-facing courtyard design incorporates a large outdoor living space, community gathering and gardening with a pedestrian chicane path alongside a series of custom designed elements.  The outdoor community room is framed by the precast BBQ counter, chess tables and a long metal framed community table inviting residents to gather, socialize daily, and celebrate during special events.  

Along the edge of the courtyard, a sound wall with accent wood and linear LED light, delineates the southern edge of the courtyard with a 75-foot-long sculpted wood deck and built-in seating for relaxing resting spots for residents while protecting the mature neighboring tree row.  The adjacent tree grove within the courtyard, contains a stormwater management system designed under the paving to not only optimize the infrastructure cost but also to benefit the long-term health of the trees.
 

Framed in the backdrop are pomegranate trees and an apple espalier at the west end of the courtyard, the fully accessible community garden nestles into two sculpted landforms with native flowers echoing the distant landscape of hills while also encouraging casual interaction and socialization within the community.