SIMBA SIMBI SENIOR RESIDENCE

Simba Simbi Senior Residence, located along Livonia Avenue in Brownsville, Brooklyn, provides housing for older New Yorkers and supportive services for formerly homeless seniors. On the ground floor, the non-profit, community-based Victory Music and Dance Company operates dance studios, training space, and computer labs for local youth.

The landscape design focused on balancing paved area, planting, and programmed space for the diverse user groups within the building that would be using the courtyard. A large central paved area with flush canopy trees and movable furniture provides flexibility for events. The central area is ringed by built-in benches, custom designed for ease of use by seniors. An outdoor work counter and raised vegetable beds encourage gardening and social interaction for residents.

The development team pushed for careful consideration of material use and detailing, including the creation of a long-term landscape maintenance plan and training for the building superintendent and management staff. Terrain worked closely with the developer in detailing fences, benches, and paving details and in the planting design, evaluating together the specific qualities of each species planted on-site.

Location: Brownsville, Brooklyn, NY_Size: 6,500 SF _Client: Dunn Development_Collaborators: SLCE (Architect), Civil Design Works (Civil), MEGA (General Contractor), Solicito & Son (Landscape Contractor_Status: Completed _Year: 2023_Team: Steven Tupu, Joe Norman, Brian Green, Rui Tao