Welcome to the latest GGLO news.

Atria Valley View, an assisted living community located in the hills of Walnut Creek, CA, received LEED® Silver certification from the USGBC in April 2012. This certification marks the second award for the second year in a row that an Atria Senior Living project has received Silver certification, the first being Atria Tamalpais Creek in Novato, California.

Atria Valley View Senior Living has completed a full renovation the existing 2-story residential care facility with 125 apartments. The 2011 renovation work includes reconfiguration of some existing uses, expansion and remodeling of the central community areas, and comprehensive updates of the site and landscape features to enhance outdoor living. The existing building exteriors are updated to incorporate new windows, to remove an outdated mansard roofline, the repair of failing balconies, and new siding, trim, and masonry accents.

The design concept is a redevelopment of the existing site and building to be reminiscent of a Northern California Lodge. One of the primary design ideas is to create a strong indoor-outdoor connections. The primary characteristics of the building concept are the use of natural materials and the introduction of details rich with earth tone colors and textures. Fundamental to the design is the acknowledgement that Atria Valley View is a community for seniors and their families as well as the facility staff. To this end the design is welcoming, accessible and safe.

GGLO provided architectural, interior and landscape design services for Atria Valley View, as well as conducting LEED® administration. Achieving LEED Silver certification demonstrates Atria Senior Living’s commitment to the health and comfort of residents and staff. This latest accomplishment expands our large and rapidly growing list of projects that have achieved green building benchmarking standards, updated in December 2011, total combined unit count and gross building areas are summarized below: