According to French Associates, a senior recreation center needs to be designed with a healthy and active senior population in mind. There are special considerations for the aging, some subtle and some more significant, that will make this specific building type successful and some of those are discussed below.
Circulation
Vehicular and pedestrian circulation should be designed to provide clarity and reduce conflicts. A patron drop-off area at the front of the building is essential as many seniors are driven to the facility by family members. This area should be well defined and separated from the parking lot traffic. Volunteer traffic for a “Meals on Wheels” program and transportation buses should be separated from the route of delivery trucks and everyday visitor traffic. Pedestrian seniors should not have to cross vehicular routes when entering from parking areas.
Senior Recreation Centers
Here come the Baby Boomers!
“ ....the senior population will double while all other age groups will decrease or increase only dlightly.”
-SEMCOG (Southeast Michigan Council of Governments)
A large facility should consider multiple entrances to allow access to portions of the building that can be isolated and operated independently for special programs. Multiple entrances reduce distances to activity rooms and increase ease of way finding.
Safety
Transparency is a key concept in the design of a senior center. The location of staff stations or offices within the building is another important consideration. A decentralized staff can respond more quickly to the users of the facility, whether it is to answer a question or an emergency situation. An active senior center will have many programs and activities happening simultaneously. Some programs are supervised while other activities are independent. Providing clear views or windows to every space will allow staff to monitor all the activities and offer the appropriate assistance. The correct choice of interior materials, colors and textures can improve the definition of edges, entries and changes in elevation. Variations in lighting levels can improve depth perception for people with even mild macular degeneration. The exterior of the building also needs to be carefully designed. Slip and fall is the number one cause of injury among the senior population. Exterior features such as heated walkways, covered entrances, and rails and lighting should be carefully designed to increase the safety of the facility.
Flexibility
Successful centers may offer hundreds of classes and activities in a given year and many special events, lectures and parties. Some facilities even offer rooms for rent by the general public and local businesses. Many spaces within the building need to adapt to different size groups with a variety of presentation requirements. Rooms may often be used by different groups for a variety of activities during the same day or week. This need for flexibility is met in part by eliminating ownership and careful scheduling. The technology in the building must allow different room arrangements and presentation media. The rooms themselves can be flexible by utilizing operable partitions to adjust the size of the room to the needs of the activity.
Comfort
Beyond the basic requirements of safety, many elements within the building can be designed with the comfort of the senior in mind. A smaller scaled building with clear entry points and short travel distances will make the facility comfortable and easy to use. Auditory comfort can be increased by the reduction of high frequency noise. Various sound absorbing materials and furniture can be utilized to achieve the desired requirements of individual spaces. For those with reduced dexterity, features such as lower cabinet heights with larger handles and toilet facilities with higher seat heights make the use of the facility more comfortable. The heating and cooling systems should be designed to respond to various size groups with different temperature needs.
Many of these concepts are applicable to all public facilities. Their integration into a facility for seniors is however critical to the success of this building type. Careful planning, both on the part of the designers and facility directors, is crucial to the outcome of a successful senior center. A vibrant and active senior center will only be as successful as the programs available to the community. However, without adequate facilities, it will be very difficult to offer the variety and type of programs baby boomers, turned seniors, will soon demand
Video Conferencing - Courthouses Are Making the Change
In the wake of the tragic shootings that took place in an Atlanta courthouse in 2005,Visit Here http://videoconferencingbasics.blogspot.com/
it is unequivocally clear that there is now a widespread effort by numerous counties to significantly enhance courtroom security. Most counties are addressing the security issue through technology, and the type that appears to be implemented the most is video conferencing. Already in use by legal systems throughout the world, video conferencing is revolutionizing the way cases are tried in America today. By simply installing one video conferencing system at the courthouse and another at the jail, incarcerated defendants can participate in all legal procedures without the municipality enduring the costs and dangers associated with jail-to-courthouse prisoner transport.
The monetary savings to a county become clear when one considers that costly resources need to be allocated, such as: several policemen, a vehicle, courthouse security, gasoline and tolls, among others. Depending on several factors, among them the distance of the courthouse to the jail and geographic location, these costs can sometimes reach into the thousands, even for just one trip. Over the course of a year, the result is a hefty bill that video conferencing aims to eliminate. In October of 2003, the Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance, at the request of the Badger State Sheriff's Association, which represents sheriff departments in various Wisconsin counties, initiated a study into the possible time and cost-saving benefits of video conferencing. The study revealed a savings of about $2.7 million if all counties used the technology. That data, along with the obvious security benefits, was enough for Wisconsin's Green County to move ‘full speed ahead' with video conferencing.
Like many courthouses, Green County's proposed video conferencing system had been in the planning stages for quite some time and the incident in Atlanta proved to be the spark needed to move the project forward. In an interview featured in an article by Brian Gray of the Monroe Times, Green County Circuit Court Judge James Beer said, "video conferencing is the wave of future. It shows the court is moving into the 21st century." The equipment will enable doctors to appear at mental health proceedings and people who are serving time in prison to appear remotely. "The benefits are limitless. It saves the county a great deal of money and also increases security here at the courthouse."
Video conferencing in the court room also has other uses. In Pennsylvania's Montgomery County, large police departments such as Abington (92 officers) use the technology not only to handle on-camera arraignments for smaller departments in the county but also to digitally process and transmit photographs and fingerprints into criminal databases. In minutes, police can have fingerprints and photographs matched with a defendant's criminal record. In an interview featured in an article by Harry Yanoshak of the Bucks County Courier Times, Montgomery Deputy Chief John Livingood said, "Because it has such technology, Abington and other large departments serve as a central booking center for defendants. Video arraignments are time savers because defendants never have to leave the police station to see the judge. If we had to take a person to see the judge in person, it would effectively take two officers out of service for at least a couple of hours," he said, noting the length of time could be longer if the on-call judge is located across the county.
In Montgomery County, police and deputy sheriffs, rarely constables, shuttle defendants to the county prison, said District Judge Paul Leo, whose court in Hatboro has used video conferencing for about two years. While the technology enables a judge to do work from home, that's not how it's being used in his courtroom, he said, noting how the courts should remain open to the public, regardless if the proceeding is captured on a computer screen.Visit Here http://videoconferencingbasics.blogspot.com/
Retrieved from "http://www.articlesbase.com/video-conferencing-articles/video-conferencing-courthouses-are-making-the-change-2064760.html"
Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/video-conferencing-articles/video-conferencing-courthouses-are-making-the-change-2064760.html#ixzz0sGz7Z83C
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution
Attend to process
French Associates, states you are not doing an effective job of marketing if all you do is put up a billboard. You are not doing a good job of communication if all you do is publish four newsletters each year. Marketing, communication, and school elections are all processes. Each of these processes begins when you decide to do something. None of these processes has an ending.
An election campaign is not a single thing or event. It is a complex process that must be goal-oriented and flexible enough to accommodate changes in the campaign environment.
Tip Four: Process requires people and a plan. Winners know what they want from their "three Ps"-their plan, their process, and their people. And, here's a bonus tip related to process: Don't get trapped into believing that your campaign ends on election day. Actually, that's the day your next election begins and the election process recycles.
MSD Washington Township scored big at the polls on May 4. The school corporation passed its referendum by more than 70%.
French Associates, Architects strategic alliance partner-Banach, Banach & Cassidy-worked on the campaign with Washington Township citizens and school officials. BB&C conducted a pre-election telephone survey in the community, managed the voter data base, and provided strategic counsel during the referendum campaign. Washington Township's citizen committee leadership graduated from the Campaign College conducted in Indianapolis by French Associates and BB&C.
TIP 2 from French Associates
Know who will vote
If we called a one-hour school election for two o'clock this afternoon, three categories of people would show up-yes voters, no voters, and undecided voters. The same categories of people will show up at the school election that you have called for next year. The challenge is to discover how many of each category resides in your school district. Once that is done, the job that needs doing is fairly straightforward: Reinforce yes voters, generally ignore no voters, and try to move the undecideds into the yes voter column.
Tip Two: Know how many yes voters you need to win. Find them and get them to the polls on election day.
A school district's architect can make board members look like heroes or goats. And an architect can directly affect a school district's educational program - positively or negatively - for 50 years or more! For these reasons-and many others- there can be little doubt that selecting an archtect ranks as one of the most important decisions a school board has to make.
Before you decide what architectural firm your school district will hire, develop some decision-making criteria. Give the list to every architectural firm that will submit on your project, an tell all of them that you will use the criteria in making your decision.
SCHOOL DISTRICT CRITERIA FOR SELECTING AN ARCHITECT
A briefing from
French Associates and
Banach, Banach & Cassidy
Almost everyone believes that education is important. And, almost everybody says that we must invest in our children because they are "the future." Given these beliefs, it seems that school districts should win every election they bring to the voters. Au contraire!
People vote in school elections for myriad reasons. This is what makes every election unique. Yet, school districts that tend to win at the polls do exhibit some characteristics that losers don't. The winning characteristics and some related tips are the subject of this article.
Build a support base
School leaders know that most voters in school elections decide how to vote long before election day. On election day voters step in to the voting booth, close the curtain, and pull one of two levers-yes or no.
School leaders also understand that campaigns don't win elections. Campaigns simply harness support that is already there.
And where does this support come from? It is the result of doing good over time. It is also the result of making sure people in your community know about your good work. Put differently, when school people compromise on communication with their constituents, they build barriers to election success.
Tip One: Think long-term. Build a base of support for your schools by doing good work, engaging people in the educational process, and communicating effectively. Use campaigns to reinforce the support base that you build and tap it for yes votes on election day.
French Associates is completing the final stages of renovations to Anderson Elementary School and Hedke Elementary School, a part of Trenton Public Schools. In 2008, community members approved a bond issue totaling $37 million that included this renovation work.
Here are some images from the recent re-dedication ceremony for Hedke Elementary School:
Resource Room renovation
Main Office
Gymnasium / Cafeteria
Kingsley Montgomery School (KMS), a specialized education facility in Waterford, Michigan, designed by French Associates Architects, is currently in the construction phase. KMS is a special education building that serves over 20 school districts in Oakland county. Project Manager Steve Lodge, AIA, made a visit to the site on January 13 to monitor progress.
The latest progress has been on the new main entry canopy. Composite metal panels will soon be installed where the Tyvek wrap is seen, and the bus canopy is awaiting the same composite metal panels. The contractor has completed their field measurements and the panels are now in fabrication stages. These panels are expected to be installed in February.
The bus canopy is in place to protect handicapped students who are arriving at the building via the traffic loop at the main entrance to the building.
Here are some views of the interior of the main entry vestibule.
These quotes are intended to inspire the students as they enter and exit the building each day.
When it comes to school financial elections, there are no guarantees. But there are steps you can take to improve your odds.
That's why French Associates formed a strategic alliance with Banach, Banach & Cassidy (BB&C), one of the nation's premier survey research and campaign strategy firms. We formed this alliance to help you win your next financial election.
We know what it takes to win at the polls, and their record of success is unequaled. They don't tell you what to do. Rather, they work with you doing what needs to be done.