Reimagined

Eco-Therapeutic

Home for the Elderly

Complex

In foreign countries, it is usual for the elderly to prepare for their own continuing care and assistance; unlike in the local setting, which is the opposite since Filipinos are known for their trait of close familial ties, wherein the grandparents tend to be taken care of by their families

However, there are still little or a number of Filipino elderlies who are homeless and are abandoned by their own family.

As they are part of the community, there are residential care facilities or home for the elderly that accommodate such people, offering social services that includes provision of basic necessities, special care, and rehabilitation.

In Bulacan, the senior citizens importance to the community is recognized through the ordinance Bulacan Senior Citizens Code, under R.A. 9994 Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2012.

Most of the existing elderly care facilities are generally unsuitable for its target market and are lacking in some architectural aspects.

Most of these facilities are also located in remote areas, which isolates the elderly from the community.

The significance of the design of retirement homes to the users

How architecture can address the needs of the users especially the senior citizens on residential care facilities

Architectural solutions that can be used to improve the conditions of the elderly

Innovations that can be applied and added to the development of elderly care facilities

Psychological influence of design and environment of such facilities to the elderly and other users

OBJECTIVES

GOAL Identify the needs and wants of the users that will be

essential to the development of the design of the facility.

Develop the design of the usual elderly care facilities by reinventing spaces within the structure and supplying other functional areas.

Encourage community interdependence through application of the concept of community oriented design.

Apply the concept of an eco-therapeutic environment that will enhance the physical, mental and emotional well-being of the elderly who are vulnerable and sensitive.

Promote green living to its users through environment friendly and productive activities by supplementing innovations to a residential care facility

Community-centered, self-sustainable living for the

elderly through a reimagined elderly care facility

complex

New concept and innovation in the design of retirement homes that will recognize and adhere more to the needs of the elderly.

Develop a more sustainable and effective structure that will benefit the users physical, emotional and mental well-being.

Useful data to the government or respective authority for more appropriate response to such facilities.

Guide to future research endeavors.

SIGNIFICANCE

SCOPE & LIMITATION

Development of architectural design and it will not further discuss

other focus such as finances and estimates of the proposal, as well as

building technology and utilities.

Open type of oral questionnaire for the personal interview

Naturalistic observation of the area to identify and describe the behavior of the users

Luwalhati ng Maynila Home for the Aged at the Manila

Boys Town Complex at Brgy. Parang, Marikina City

RESEARCH LOCALE

RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

Population of Luwalhati ng Maynila by

Gender

Male Female

Luwalhati ng Maynila Staff

Director Social Worker MDSW Worker Cook Volunteers

Overpopulated. Planned to

accommodate only up to 170

people; Total of 284 residents with

116 males and 168 females.

Undermanaged. Total of 31 staff,

1 Managing Director, 2 Social

Workers, 1 Cook and the rest are

volunteers.

There is a significant demand for reimagining and improvement of the design of retirement homes.

The existing homes for the elderly in the country can be described as mediocre, undermanaged and are too basic.

The elderly still have every right to have improvement in their lives by experiencing even the smallest amount of consideration and kind of atmosphere that will be beneficial to their well-being;

The design of such residential facilities has an influence to the users well-being and behavior.

The problems of such facilities can be solved through architectural methods and application of techniques and innovations for the design of such structures.

Potential to grow into models of architectural beauty

Focus on the holistic application of sustainability and green living on the design of these structures in the play of nature and architecture.

The promotion of community interdependence to create a context of a harmonious and self-sustaining environment that will make the elderly feel useful

Stressing resiliency and use of advanced technology for such kind of structures.

Reinvention of the current design of spaces of existing residential care facilities that will address more the special needs of the elderly

Implementation of new ideas and strategies to create a well-rounded environment for the elderly that will provide them barrier against emotional stress brought by isolation and feeling of neglect

1. SELF-SUFFICIENCY

- Sustainability to reduce the carbon footprint and provide better environment for the users.

2. GREEN LIVING

- promotion of green living to the users through simple activities such as planting etc.

3. ECO-THERAPEUTIC

-Emphasizing the healing environment of the facility

4. COMMUNITY INTERDEPENDENCE

- Promoting interactivity and productivity among the abled users and mutually depending on one another

PRINCIPLES

1. AESTHETIC AND INTERIOR DESIGN- Integrating the shell design of the structure to

create a new perception on homes for the elderly as model of architectural beauty

- Improving the interior design that will have positive impact to the users

- Innovative design by using local building materials and being inspired by Philippine architecture.

2. ENVIRONMENT- Concepts of sustainability to create a healthier

and homey environment

- Optimized the mobility and accessibility of spaces for independent functioning of the abled elderly

3. SPACES - Reimagining the design and spatial configuration

for current and future users to prevent congestion

- Creating open type and/ or flexible design of spaces for as better circulation as architectural solution

- Auxiliary spaces to generate more opportunities for activities

1. LOCATION

2. NEIGHBORING STRUCTURES

3. ACCESSIBILITY

4. ZONING/ LAND USE

5. LAND AREA

6. TOPOGRAPHY

7. SOIL TYPE

8. FLOOD SUSCEPTIBILITY

SITE CRITERIA

LOCATION: Brgy. Look II

AREA: 6.7 hectares consisting of two adjacent lots

LOT TYPE: Inside lot

ROAD ACCESSIBILITY: Taal Road and is accessible via Tabang Road, linked

to Mcarthur Hi-way

SITE TOPOGRAPHY: Relatively flat and mostly surrounded by agricultural lands

and residences.

LOCATION: Brgy. Santor

AREA: 2.2 Hectares composed of two adjacent lots

LOT TYPE: Interior lot, provided with an RROW

ROAD ACCESSIBILITY: Accessible via the minor road, Purok 1st and is located

near the First Bulacan Industrial City.

SITE TOPOGRAPHY: Relatively flat in slope and is prone into flooding during

heavy rains

LOCATION: Brgy. Santor

AREA: 2.8 hectares, Lot 4459-H

LOT TYPE: Inside lot, but with a strategic shape causing it to appear as an interior lot.

ROAD ACCESSIBILITY: It is also accessible via Purok 1st road, and near the First

Bulacan Industrial City.

SITE TOPOGRAPHY: Relatively flat slope

1. Rectangular shaped lot which is more practical to develop and planned and to also avoid wasting any spaces on the site.

2. 6.8 hectares will be ideal for proposing a complex; The left-over spaces can also be converted into open spaces or for future developments

3. Site A is not susceptible to flooding during heavy rains.

SITE A: BRGY LOOK II

4. The location of the site is ideal for a residential care facility because of the environment yet still establishing contact with the outside community.

5. The lot is conveniently accessible, approximately 700 meters from a minor road

6. The selected site is surrounded by mostly residential structures, yielding a homier environment

SITE A: BRGY LOOK II

SITE A: BRGY LOOK II

GEOGRAPHY

- It is situated about 42 kilometers northeast of Manila and is easily accessible to all types of vehicle using the two major transportation arteries, namely, North Luzon Expressway and Mac Arthur Highway.

TOPOGRAPHY

- Generally, is relatively flat of about 0.81% to a gently sloping of 2.17%.

CLIMATE

- Generally falls under Type I category of the Philippine Climate Corona Classification that has two pronounced seasons; wet and dry seasons.

SEISMIC HAZARD

- Has low risk to earthquake.

MALOLOS, BULACAN

Brgy. Look II is one of the 51 barangays in Malolos.

The population of the barangay from NSO Census as of 2010 is 2,610.

Although there are certain parts

of Barangay Look II that are highly

prone flooding due to the nearby

Guiguinto traversing the area, the

selected site has a low to moderate

flood susceptibility.

Brgy. Look II is mainly divided into

residential and agricultural. The

selected site is categorized into

agricultural

IRR OF P.D. 1096 (NATIONAL BUILDING CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES)

Building Type: General Institutional

Allowable Maximum Total Gross Floor Area (TGFA) Based on the Allowed Percentage of Site Occupancy (PSO) of the Total Lot Area (TLA)

For Institutional GROUP D (Inside or Regular Lot)

Without Sprinkler System and Firewalls: BHL X 50% of TLA

With Sprinkler System and Firewalls: BHL X 60% of TLA

Building Height Limit (BHL) by Type of Use or Occupancy

Institutional: 15.00 meters (or must follow the duly-approved BHL in the major zone it is part of)

Setbacks for Institutional building (10.00 m below RROW)

Front- 5.00 m

Side- 2.00

Rear- 2.00

As the site is located at a rural area and only surrounded by

residential structures, noise pollution is very minimal.

The design shall reflect the vision

of the structure as an institutional

facility which presents the idea of

compassion. It expresses the idea

of genuine service as what the

proposed structure is mainly

devoted for. SCHEME 1

The design shall reflect the vision

of the structure as an institutional

facility which presents the idea of

compassion. It expresses the idea

of genuine service as what the

proposed structure is mainly

devoted for. SCHEME 2

The complexity of the form of

structure shall not be an excuse

for its structural concept. Through

shear wall reinforcement, it can

provide structural integrity for the

building while retaining its

aesthetic function.

A curved structure should not be

limited to the structural foundation

of its concept. An evident layout

can be seen as it follows the grids

within curved walls and columns

Shear wall can follow the irregular shape of the

structure and also provide a withstand pressure

from earth movement for additional resiliency. It

acts as both a foundation and a wall bearing that

are certified to endure collapse especially during

earthquakes.

Shear walls are

designed to resist

shear, the lateral

force that causes the

bulk of damage

in earthquakes.

Accumulation and deposition

of rainwater for reuse on-site,

rather than allowing it to run

off.

It can be used as water for

garden, water for livestock,

water for irrigation, water for

domestic use with proper

treatment.

The harvested water can also

be used as drinking water as

well as for storage and other

purpose like irrigation.

As the structure shall promote

sustainability and self sufficiency,

the proposal shall consist of green

methods and environment friendly

procedures for the integration of

the building utilities of the

structure.

The approach that requires a

systems thinking in sanitation,

where the steps user interface,

collection, transport or

conveyance, treatment, reuse

or disposal are all carefully

assessed - rather than simply

focusing on the toilet itself

Simple urinals with separate collector systems could be

installed instead of using

toilets and pit latrines for

urination

Flush toilets could be modified to use less water.

Greywater could be source-separated from the

blackwater from toilets thus

simplifying its treatment and

providing opportunities for

reuse.

Blackwater from toilets could be held in conservancy tanks

instead of open septic tanks

and cess pits and then

emptied and transported to

biogas reactors; alternatively

the toilets could be

connected to biogas

reactors.

A Sustainable approach on

providing natural daylighting

and ventilation for the structure,

minimizing energy usage and

increasing the self sufficiency of

the structure.

Light shelves allow light to penetrate

through a building, and are also

designed to shade near the

windows due to the overhangs of

the window.

Proper orientation of the

building and passive cooling

technique provides natural

ventilation throughout the

structure, limiting the use of

electric fans and

airconditioners.