The Pillars of Lakeville In Minnesota
The Pillars of Lakeville, in Lakeville, Minn., developer Oppidan’s (Excelsior, Minn.) seventh Pillars senior living community in Minnesota, is a 132,000-square-foot community with 100 units for independent living, assisted living, and memory care.
Opened in February 2023, the project was developed to fulfill the vision of Crossroads Church leadership of building an intergenerational campus that included a senior living community that integrates the church; Christian Heritage Academy, a private Christian school for kindergarten through eighth grade; and Four Square Preschool Early Learning Center. The Pillars of Lakeville was the final piece that tied it all together allowing for all entities to partner to enhance the programming and experiences of all involved.
Prioritizing intergenerational connections in senior living
To support opportunities for shared intergenerational programming, The Pillars of Lakeville is physically connected to the rest of its partners through an internal hallway, which fosters simple and safe passage.
Recognizing the country club-type of living in the greater Lakeville community, the project team sought to find a balance between approachable and high-end for the new senior living community. For example, the exterior features a modern aesthetic with an overhanging roof on the fascia, hung balconies, and dark metal panels accented with white siding.
Inside, the community’s dramatic, two-story lobby features floor-to-ceiling windows, a fireplace, and views through the dining room to the patio and courtyard beyond.
The interior incorporates warm woodwork and earth-tone finishes. For example, shades of warm terra cotta and calming blues can be found throughout, along with pops of yellow and pink incorporated through lively wallcoverings, accessories, and artwork.
Assisted living, independent living, and memory care
This age-in-place community, meaning that all independent and assisted living units are interchangeable. However, a local code required that all apartments on the top, fourth floor are not allowed to have services provided by the operator, meaning that the fourth floor of this community is IL only. This unique feature has created an active adult atmosphere on the top floor, where Independent living residents also have access to a sky lounge and deck space for entertaining.
The 14-unit memory care neighborhood first floor allows for close interactions between staff and a calming environment for residents. Also allows for easy access to a spacious and active private garden for memory care residents.
In order to maximize the function of the memory care commons, the design team created zones to enable residents with different interests to co-exist in the same space. Some may prefer to cozy up on the couch near the fireplace, while another may prefer to work on a puzzle or grab a seat at the island for a cooking demo with the staff.
The Pillars of Lakeville project details
Location: Lakeville, Minn.
Completion date: February 2023
Owner: Oppidan
Total building area: 132,000 sq. ft.
Total construction cost: $20 million
Cost/sq. ft.: $153/sq. ft.
Architect: Tushie Montgomery
Interior designer: BDH Design, JMH Designs
General contractor: Greystone Construction
Engineer: Alliant Engineering (civil)
Builder: Greystone Construction
Medical equipment planner: Ebenezer Management
Art consultant: Art Partners
Art/pictures: Art Partners
AV equipment/electronics/software: Matrix NDI, Aufderworld
Carpet/flooring: Patcraft, Masland, Mannington, J + J Flooring, Tarkett, Milliken, Bentley, Ceramic Tile Works, Armstrong
Doors/locks/hardware: Schlage,
Fabric/textiles: Pollack, Kwalu, Kravet, Anzea, Schumacher, other
Furniture—seating/casegoods: Fairfield, Kellex, Space Tables, Sarreid
Lighting: Berd Electric
Signage/wayfinding: SDDI Sign Systems
Surfaces—solid/other: Cambria, Granite-Tops, LLC
Wallcoverings: Momentum, Design Resource Midwest
Window treatments: American Drapery
Kitchen planner: Boelter, LLC
Project details are provided by the design team and not vetted by Environments for Aging.
