Expansion and renovations bring post-acute rehab services to Generations at Applewood rehabilitation and skilled nursing community
[Matteson, IL] – After their hospital stays, some people aren’t quite ready to return home—they need physical therapy to recover from everything from knee surgeries and muscle tears to strokes.
Generations at Applewood has responded to this need and extended its reputation for “compassionate, person-centered care” with a short-term care expansion.
The 27,000-square-foot addition and 10,000-square-foot renovation features 30 private suites for rehab patients to get back on track. It was designed by Legat Architects and built by Landmark Construction Systems Inc.
Generations at Applewood Administrator Debbie Massey said the addition has drawn many residents from south suburban Chicago and beyond. “There’s a great demand for short-term rehabilitation services in this region,” she said. “Residents and their families appreciate the warm, homelike setting that the addition provides.”
A Cozy Place to Recover
The corridor crossroads at the heart of the addition features a large skylight, exposed structural wood, and a distinctive floor pattern. This hub functions like a front porch—it orients building users and displays each of the amenities.
The design team also used color to highlight key spaces.
Legat’s Steve Blye, project designer, said, “A color palette of white, beige, tan, and chocolate provides a neutral backdrop and draws attention to the brighter walls and furniture fabrics within the rooms.”
Among the new amenities that welcome short-term care residents are The Scoop ice cream parlor/Internet café (a family favorite), a country store, a beauty salon, a dining room, and a library complete with a fireplace.
In the Wellness & Fitness Center, residents get the therapy needed to resume their normal lives. A light-filled physical therapy room triples the size of the old one. It accesses a new fully surrounded courtyard for outdoor therapy during warmer months.
Therapists also help retrain residents to perform everyday tasks in the activities of daily living spaces. These include a simulated bedroom, kitchen, laundry room, and supermarket corner.
The project also includes conversion of a small dining room and resident rooms into a new and improved long-term care main dining room. The renovated dining room, twice the size of the old one, features taller ceilings, new flooring, and new windows that bring in more daylight and provide views to the courtyard.
Additional project components include a new kitchen, nurse stations, living room space, a dialysis center, and administrative offices.
See Legat’s work at other facilities in the Generations Healthcare Network: Generations at Neighbors and Oakton Pavillion.
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