Last September I posted about a senior storage facility er, “senior apartments” which I found to be disturbing for several reasons. I recently ran across a similar project which gives the bleak and utilitarian exterior an additional synthetic twist:
Same basic design as in a previous post – but with polypropylene panels imitating brick in addition to the standard vinyl siding.
It appeared to me that many of the “bricks” were decorated by vandals. Later I found out that they were actually made this way at the factory!
What’s going on at the corner?! This looks odd…
Oh… that explains a lot.
Nice attention to detail!
A quick Google search for “the finest in senior living” turns up about 12,000 results. Pretty sure that the finest ones don’t have exteriors of polypropylene and vinyl.
Wow, is the spraypainted white bricks supposed to simulate the character of real vandalism? It looks terrible. About as terrible as the laughable marketing for the plastic brick panels: “Nailon fake brick siding is an ideal way to create the look and beauty of real brick without the time, cost and long installation process of actual brick masonry.”
And all of that behind a big sea of paving. So depressing.
It really does look terrible… so bad, in fact, that I honestly thought the spray paint splotches had been done after purchase! Even more disturbing than the product itself is the fact that so many humans are apparently not disturbed by it.
“Even more disturbing than the product itself is the fact that so many humans are apparently not disturbed by it.”
That truly is the most disturbing part. It never ceases to amaze me how oblivious people are about their built environment and how willing they are to tolerate substandard design as perfectly normal.
That “brick” is the ugliest thing I have ever seen. I bet they got it on clearance.
picky picky picky. if you’re going to look like crap, who cares about details. besides, living in a vinyl clad garage is way better than living under that highway overpass. those diesel fumes were making me crazy. I like the windows in the fake barn doors.
Senior Storage Facility – HA! I laughed out loud there. And ugh – quite depressing.
Senior housing truly is my worst nightmare, and you are correct, this is just warehousing of people, not providing homes. These places are run by large corporations who only see the bottom line and answer to shareholders, not residents (who probably have almost zero voice in the matter). I believe there truly is a special place for these greedy people in the end. One reaps what one sows.
As for the spray painted faux brick. They look like cartoon caricatures of brick. I picture some unfortunate soul making minimum wage and spending eight hour shifts with a can of black and a can of white spray paint. The shop supervisor is yelling… “Add history to those plastic panels! Make them look old!”
When I was growing up in California in the 70s, my grandfather spent the last five years of his life in a “rest home” as they were called back then. He had Parkinson’s disease and lost his motor skills. I remember as a child how awful these places were and how poorly the patients were cared for, and of course the constant smell of urine wafting up and down the dreary hallways. I would rather be put out of my misery than suffer a life in one of these places.
Unfortunately, I have similar memories myself of the “nursing” home in which my grandfather was incarcerated. Dreary, urine-scented halls with fluorescent lights and endless handrails emphasizing all that is horrific about these kinds of places. I agree; I’d much rather be dead than live in one.