It’s a New Age for Old Age

Since the 1950’s, the traditional nursing home philosophy of care, including interior environments, was patterned on an institutional hospital model. Researchers and caregivers today are challenging this fundamentally disorienting and alienating environment by systematically studying what practices and environments give patients and families higher-quality experiences. Evidence based design is the process of basing decisions about the built environment on credible research to achieve the best possible outcomes. Researchers and designers are creating a new enriched map that has profound effects on the social and physical terrain.

Tobin+Parnes’ goal has been to create healing and therapeutic environments that can have profound effects on a patient’s ability to recover. Reduction in patient and family stress, improvement of overall healthcare outcomes, improvement in patient safety, and reduction in staff stress and fatigue are our primary concerns. We are being challenged to think about aging in place as a significant stage of life in which we can continue to thrive. The built environment has become a surrogate for excellent care and can enhance healing and create positive experiences for families and patients. This roadmap reinforces the vision of the caring institution and creates an emotional message that is positive and reassuring. The toolkit includes increasing resident social support, reducing disorientation, providing adequate exposure to natural light, providing increased resident privacy and noise reduction. Nursing homes are being redefined and designed on a much more intimate scale ensuring the dignity and wellness of the individual. A place which provides an environment that promotes safety, social grounding and warmth; a place that someone we love can enjoy. Think about what home means to you; the place that is distinctly yours, your safety net, your private place, your sanctuary.

Long-term care research supports this new direction in design. Existing institutions designed on the hospital model are being redeveloped into cozy “neighborhoods” with bedrooms surrounded by family areas, pantries, living spaces, personalized entries and front doors, laundry areas, porches and patios, lots of greenery, animals, mailboxes natural light, intimate dining areas, less noise and more privacy. Environments are organized, uncluttered, visually appealing to the senses and convey a real vitality and vibrancy — a real human habitat designed for resident centered care. Researchers have suggested that centralized nursing stations negatively reinforce the sense of hierarchy and are being eliminated or re-defined. Residents thrive in quantifiable ways. There is a relationship between environmental satisfaction, the physical environment and functioning outcomes. Families and staff are engaged in a positive emotional experience.

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Tobin+Parnes Restores a Piece of Broadway History



Tobin+Parnes has been commissioned by The Riese Organizations to restore the famed I. Miller building at 1552 Broadway in New York City.

Currently a T.G.I. Fridays restaurant, the building was once home to the famed celebrity shoe store I. Miller Shoes. Originally built by acclaimed shoe designer, Israel Miller, the retail building’s landmark design was completed in 1926 by Architect Louis H. Friedland.

Miller chose façade materials and architectural details that paid homage to the building’s prominent Time Square location, including limestone, polished marble and bronze, terra cotta, mosaic and motifs that reflect various classically-inspired historic styles.

The design also incorporated two distinct elements along the 46th Street side of the building that acknowledged Miller’s gratitude to the theatrical community that includes a large inscription reading “The Show Folks Shoe Shop Dedicated to Beauty in Footwear”. Also artfully presented on this facade are four beautifully carved golden niches that house statues of 1920’s leading actresses who were chosen by the public to be forever displayed on this historic building. Ethel Barrymore, Marilyn Miller, Mary Pickford and Rosa Ponselle were gracefully rendered by Alexander Stirling Calder, father of renowned modern sculptor Alexander Calder.

The work on the I. Miller building, slated to begin in spring 2009, will involve restoration and cleaning of the limestone façade and the existing statue niches along 46th Street. The marble panels and decorative stone surrounding its window openings will also be restored. Additional building signage added in the past will be removed to reveal large second floor windows and marble panels along 7th Avenue. A new carefully selected fabric awning will be installed at the first floor window openings along 7th Avenue and 46th Street.

Tobin+Parnes designers are committed to preserving the integrity of the building and forestalling additional deterioration. Part of that process is proposing to apply new modern technologies, including an environmentally friendly cleaning material proven to prevent dirt build-up over long periods of time, even in a city as sooty as New York!

“Historical restoration and preservation is a passionate commitment for all of us at Tobin+Parnes and we consider it an honor to have been awarded this project,” said Robert Parnes. “It’s very exciting to have the opportunity to use modern advancements in design and architecture to keep the past alive.”

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*Architectural services are provided by and under the direct supervision of Robert Mark Parnes Architecture LLC, a licensed architect.