Location: 
Bridgewater, New Jersey
Total Square Feet: 66,862
Construction Period: Dec 1999 to Jan 2001

Construction Team
Developer: KJV Development Corporation - 660 Newark Avenue, #200, Newark, NJ 07306
General Contractor: J. T. Magen & Co., Inc. - 44 West 28th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10001
Structural Engineer: Harrison-Hamnett - 1072 Parkway Avenue, West Trenton, NJ 08618
Electrical & Mechancial Engineer: KFA - 1086 Teaneck Road, Teaneck, NJ 07666
Interior Designer: BEAM International, Inc. - Masco Corporate Headquarters, 21001 Van Born Road, Taylor, MI 48180

The owner/developer, KJV Development Corporation, envisioned Autumn Woods Assisted Living with a building design that included generously sized residential units and varied types and sizes of common use areas. The aim was to create an assisted living residence which truly provided all the comforts of home. These goals, as well as the desire to position this building competitively in the rental market, were the main tasks facing Dahn & Krieger Architects Planners PC upon beginning the project.

The site is located within an existing business park, and the site backs up to a stream, making the usable shape of the site rather long and narrow. The building form responds to the shape of the site while still presenting a residential type front porch entry sequence. The site was developed to provide for varying types of exterior spaces at several locations around the building.

The structural system consists of metal stud bearing walls with concrete plank floors. Structural steel framing is minimal, occurring only in the large first floor public space. Exterior walls are framed with a metal stud curtainwall system. The pitched roof is built with fire treated wood trusses. This system allows for prefabrication of nearly all the major building components, greatly condensing the construction phase and allowing for a speedy enclosure of the building shell.

Exterior finish materials are residential in scale and character, including brick, vinyl siding, wood trim and vinyl double-hung windows with insulating glass. Interior finishes include wood base, trim and mouldings, vinyl wall covering and carpet. Finishes are varied from floor to floor, giving each area its own identity and aiding in way finding by the residents.

Residential units are heated and cooled by through-wall heating and cooling units, giving residents total control of their own unit's environment. Public spaces and corridors are treated by small packaged heating and cooling units disbursed throughout the building, eliminating the need for a large central mechanical plant as well as providing for individual control of spaces depending on usage.

The building is organized around a central activities core at the first and second floors. Public use spaces at the first floor include a hair salon, library, wellness center, exercise room, country kitchen, multipurpose room and residents' store. Connecting these two activity areas is a traditional open wood stair, which contributes to the residential feel of the space. Additional smaller scale living room areas are disbursed on each floor, providing residents with varied opportunities for interaction.

One wing of the first floor is designed as a self-contained unit of 13 units for residents with early stage Alzheimer#s Disease. This unit includes a dining area, residential-type kitchen, activity area and a secure exterior garden area, providing these special needs residents with a contained and safe living environment.

Residential units vary in size from basic studio units of 360-square-feet to large one-bedroom units of 700-square-feet. All units have large closet areas, fully accessible bathrooms and kitchenettes with a small refrigerator-freezer unit and microwaves. Oversized windows maximize natural daylight and connect the residents to the building surroundings.

Manufacturers/Suppliers
Exterior Walls - Light Gauge Panels: American Panel Tec; Siding: Certainteed.
Roof - Shingles: GAF.
Floors - Tile: Dal-Tile; Carpet: Shaw.
Elevators - International Elevator Co.