Kobe has a unique geographical context in Japan, with breathtaking views both inland to Mt. Rokko and to the broad expanse of Osaka Bay to the south. The landscape design of SunCity Tower Kobe, a landmark senior community in this newly developed city district, celebrates this environment. The tower is tucked into the northwest corner of the site, setting it away from a major public boulevard. This allows the low-rise nursing wing on the east perimeter and the single-story public program to frame a tranquil, on-grade stroll garden court that features a waterscape inspired by regional hydrology patterns. The development’s formal arrival court at the site’s southwest corner is set apart from adjacent “big box” retail by a generous landscape setback, providing a park-like backdrop for Sun City Hall and the Tea Lounge, two important public spaces. The property as a whole draws on Kobe’s striking mountain, city, and sea features while establishing a new standard of design, service, and care for seniors in the Kansai region.
Huntington Memorial Hospital
SWA Group acted as consultant to the architect on the development of a long-range master plan for the expansion of this existing hospital as well as landscape design and development for the 220,000 square foot phase one addition. The hospital facility’s design includes streetscape, a major entry drive and plaza, and on structure gardens with fountains adjacent...
Palo Alto Medical Center
The Palo Alto Medical Center is an expansion of an active medical building on a site surrounded by office uses. SWA’s goal was to compose new pockets of open space between buildings and provide a contiguous landscape for patients, visitors and physicians. The landscape layout includes a plaza, healing garden and a corridor garden. A new central walkway provide...
Ping Yuen Public Housing Renovation
The San Francisco public housing projects known as “pings” are widely viewed as successful. Part of this success is a direct result of their ties with the wider Chinatown community: they are comparatively low-crime, and their tenants are well-organized. Composed of four buildings with 434 units, 2,000+ residents, and five acres of landscape, the Pings are a pa...
SunCity Tachikawa Showa Kinen Koen
SunCity Showa Kinen Koen takes its name from the beloved Koen National Park that borders the development to the east and south. Built to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Emperor Showa’s reign, the park offers an ideal setting for Half Century More’s flagship continuum-of-care retirement community, with 518 independent living units and 82 nursing...