Vicar’s Landing at Oak Bridge, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.: 2026 EFA Design Showcase Honorable Mention
In 2021, Vicar’s Landing in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., started construction on a new campus less than half a mile away, seeking to complement rather than replicate the existing continuing care retirement community (CCRC).
The 325-unit CCRC, renamed Vicar’s Landing at Sawgrass as part of the project, had run out of room to expand vertically. A decommissioned golf course site offered the opportunity to meet demand that was consistently outpacing capacity. That new satellite campus, named Vicar’s Landing at Oak Bridge, would be close enough to the existing, original community to enable golf cart transportation between the two.
To further encourage residents to utilize amenities at both campuses, the new community features a new 20,000-square-foot clubhouse open to all residents, with dining venues and amenities that are different from what’s offered at Sawgrass, according to RLPS Architects (Lancaster, Pa.), which submitted the project to the Design Showcase.
For example, in addition to a fine dining option with The Oak Dining Room, the clubhouse has a casual café and pub that also provides outdoor counter service to the pool deck, which is unique to the Oak Bridge campus. The Oak Dining Room is also equipped with a retractable projector screen so that it can function as a large gathering space.
A phased project, the Oak Bridge campus opened in March 2024 with the clubhouse and 66 independent living flats and 43 cottages. A second phase of the project will add 33 flats and five cottages; the final phase comprises 43 one-bedroom assisted living suites and an 18-suite memory care neighborhood in a separate building with staff and mixed-use space on the second floor.
To ensure the new campus fit within the surrounding community, the design team studied photos of new housing being built in the area, resulting in a contemporary coastal aesthetic that celebrates the Ponte Vedra Beach seascape. Specifically, furniture, fixtures, flooring, and wall accents feature a watery blue and sandy beige color scheme, emphasized in commissioned local artwork that is displayed throughout the community.
