Located at the heart of the campus along the main indoor campus circulation spine, the curving forms of the 18,000 SF Riverview dining area and kitchen frame incredible views over the Willamette River, while integrating the building into the pedestrian paths of the community. The dining room’s sloped cedar soffit widens the aperture to capture views of the hills across the river and the sky beyond and reads like a wooden boat pulled ashore. Patterned fabric ceilings and custom graphic acoustical wall panels address the acoustical demands of aging. Skylights bring natural light and create a series of intimate dining environments. The lines between inside and outside, nature and shelter are blended and intertwined to create a place that changes with the hour, day and season. A stone-clad two-sided fireplace, translucent leaf patterned panels and a historic image of the river create an intimate Elk Rock Bistro and Bar. The adjacent outdoor Veranda frames a view up river and connects residents to the many walking paths on the campus.

As part of Willamette View’s strategic planning, WALSH was selected to demolish their existing dining facility and replace it with a new single-story, 20,000 SF, dining facility with brick exterior over structural steel with light gauge infill framing. The beautiful new dining center includes full kitchen, bar, dining areas and an auditorium for their Residential Care Facility. The work also included a 1,500 SF basement to house energy efficient equipment for heating and air conditioning. The site was centered in a very busy occupied senior-living campus with set hours of operations and significant on-site attention and efforts around resident safety.