New memory care facility will have a 1950s theme

A rendering of the memory care facility being built on Braddock Road in Annandale.

The Renaissance Senior Living facility under construction on Braddock Road near the Backlick Road intersection will have 47 apartments for people with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia.

Construction could be completed as early as fall 2018, says Barry Ray of Legacy Senior Living, which is building and operating the facility in partnership with Grace Healthcare.

Grace runs the Leewood Healthcare Center next door, an assisted living and adult day facility that also serves people with dementia.

The new memory care center will have a 1950s theme with the purpose of bringing residents “back to a happier time in their lives,” Ray says. The décor will include mid-century modern furniture, period accessories like rotary phones, and old black and white photos from the Annandale and Springfield areas.

The color scheme will feature calming blues and greens and goldish yellow, based on the colors used for General Motors cars in the 1950s

The center will have large common areas for socializing, a dining room decorated like an old-time diner serving three meals a day, a “town theater” showing old movies, and an enclosed courtyard where residents interested in gardening can grow flowers and vegetables.

The facility will also use electronic technology to prompt pleasant memories. Each resident will have a SimpleC tablet loaded with their favorite music, family pictures, and reminiscences from trusted voices, Ray says. He calls it “non-medication therapy for folks with memory loss.”

A bus will take residents to places like civic and sporting events. “We want to get them outside and into the community,” Ray says.

The project was approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors about 17 years ago. This will be the first Legacy Senior Living facility in Northern Virginia.