The Institutional Real Estate Inc Sponsorship brochure, Connected-Investor Focused, We connect people, data and insights, sponsorship, events, IREI Products
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NAREIM DIALOGUES SPRING 2018 9 Think about the buildings that are being reused today across the country as creative office space structures. The vast majority include durable interior elements, an abundance of light, high ceiling heights and flexible use of space for bigger gatherings or individual needs. The elements that make these buildings attractive are very universal design qualities and meet the intrinsic needs we have for light, connectedness and focus. While the idea of our octogenarian relatives being challenged by computer technology is common today that may not be the case in 20 or 30 years, as younger people who have grown up with computers age and move into housing designed specifically for the elderly. How would we feel if we walked into a residential development design for the elderly and saw multiple large format monitors on each unit's wall and found wireless connectivity throughout the structure? Would we be surprised by wireless cameras and door bells at each entry and would we find it out of place to have a sophisticated environmental control panel controlling the lighting, temperature and white noise on the wall in each unit? That scenario may seem farfetched but is completely realistic given today's population and technology trends. How well would the senior housing of today fare tomorrow with all those additional technological demands? A RECIPE FOR LONG - TERM SUCCESS As societies and user groups change, so should the buildings that are designed for them. As any aging baby boomer will tell you, the wise tenets of life parallel those of good structures: Flexibility coupled with good bones will make for an easier life and easier transitions as the years roll by. Buildings and their embodied technology are changing at a mind-boggling pace. The only thing that seems certain is that technological change is always coming quickly, if it is not ringing your wireless internet-connected doorbell right now. Combining the ability to change and adapt building systems with solid and timeless design precepts will help ensure that a building or complex is still being used and not part of a landfill down the road. And with ever-increasing costs and ever-tightening budgets, all parties involved with the building creation and ownership process owe it to themselves and to each other not to waste any of our precious resources on short-lived ideas and products. ©iStock.com/Kiyyah " Adaptability is the feature which allows a thing to change to fit a new use or requirement. An expectation of change and the need for an adaptation to that change should be the foundation of any design concept for a building which is planned to have a long lifespan—and be a profitable and wise investment."