Groundbreaking marks the start of Cornwall Manor’s Clubhouse at The Woods project

VaselineJune 26, 2024

1 6 minutes read

Groundbreaking marks the start of Cornwall Manor’s Clubhouse at The Woods project

Cornwall Manor officially broke ground on Wednesday, June 19, on its newest project: The Clubhouse at The Woods.

The Woods campus is connected to Cornwall Manor’s original Buckingham campus via the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail. The 120 or so homes there have been served to date with a small community center, the Treehouse, located in one of those homes.

To the left, Cornwall Manor’s Woods campus can be seen. The Woods has approximately 120 homes. Just across the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail is Cornwall Manor’s latest expansion project. The Trailside Organic Farm can be seen in the lower left, while to the right can be seen the ongoing construction of the new Clubhouse at The Woods. Cornwall Manor expects construction of the clubhouse to be completed by next year. (Will Trostel)

Once complete, the new Clubhouse building will be open to all Cornwall Manor residents, with parking spaces (including some for golf carts) and shuttle service from the Buckingham campus providing access. So, for example, a resident who lives on the Buckingham campus might come to the Clubhouse dining room for a meal.

The 24,000-square-foot, two-level clubhouse will feature multiple dining options (a casual cafe and separate dining area, along with an outdoor deck option), the largest gym space of the retirement community so far and other amenities such as a golf simulator, theater and physical therapy/massage rooms. A multipurpose room, complete with a stage, will provide additional flexibility for events, from holiday dinners to ballroom dances to other programs.

The rear of the building will overlook a pond, made from an existing retention basin, which will be cleaned and have an extended footpath.

An existing retention pond will be converted into a pond, providing views for outdoor dining at Cornwall Manor’s new clubhouse at The Woods. The Lebanon Valley Rail Trail is nearby. (graphics provided)

Many of the amenities address health and wellness, which management at Cornwall Manor say are very important to residents — both those already there and those coming in the future.

“Health and wellness has become such a big factor throughout the building,” said Jennifer Margut, vice president of marketing and public relations for Cornwall Manor. “Residents are living longer. They are active, very active, and they want to be healthy and stay healthy.”

The clubhouse is close to Trailside Organic Farm, a collaboration started in 2021 between Cornwall Manor and the Rodale Institute in Kutztown, a leader in regenerative organic agriculture. A new bank barn opened on the two-acre organic farm last fall.

Read more: Cornwall Manor’s collaboration with the Rodale Institute blossoms the newest local bank barn

“Having this organic farm was a wonderful addition for us,” said Margut. “Everything gathered goes into our dining rooms and then we have the farmers market.”

Cornwall Manor’s physical, occupational and speech therapy department will use the Clubhouse as a third location to offer services, including HydroWorx Aquatic Therapy – a type of hydrotherapy treadmill. In addition to fitness, therapy and recreation spaces, the ground floor will also have a club room, similar to what the Buckingham campus has, with a bar, pool table and lounge seating.

The rear of the Clubhouse at The Woods will overlook a pond created by repurposing an existing retention pond on the site. Construction on the clubhouse began in mid-June 2024 and is expected to be completed by the latter part of 2025. (Will Trostel)

The building is designed to be a flexible space that evolves with the taste and needs of the residents.

The project is expected to cost about $13 million, part of a global financing package secured several years ago that has been renovating Laurel Place retirement community apartments, adding balconies where possible and replacing HVAC units and will eventually include the addition of a $14 million to $15 million Apartment Building to accompany the Club House.

Read more: Cornwall Manor is planning a new clubhouse and apartment building for The Woods

Pyramid Construction crews were busy grading the site when LebTown stopped by last week. (Will Trostel)

Cornwall Manor expects the construction of the Clubhouse to take about a year, with the hope that by next year’s holiday season, residents will be in the building and enjoying the facilities.

“We’re excited to get started,” Margut said. “Our residents are excited to use it.”

Pyramid Construction is handling the construction, which Margut says has been a very good firm for Cornwall Manor.

“We’ve had a great relationship so far planning this,” she said.

The clubhouse and planned apartment building were designed by Lancaster-based Cornerstone Design Architects, who are also providing interior design consultancy in collaboration with Cornwall Manor’s in-house team. Development plans for the project were approved by Cornwall District Council in June 2023.

No date has been set for when construction might begin on the first apartment building at The Woods. Margut said the Clubhouse was the top priority and after years of planning it was very important for Cornwall Manor to open the building to residents. Plans for the apartments are hoped to be finalized by the end of the year, she said.

Arthur Funk & Sons Inc. will build the apartment building, which is expected to contain 27 units. Each apartment will have a private outdoor space, either a balcony or terrace, along with a parking space in the underground garage.

Eventually, Cornwall Manor plans to build condos near the Clubhouse at The Woods. On the right is Ironmaster Road. (Will Trostel)

Although the apartment building was included in the original land development plan along with several other planned future buildings, Margut said Cornwall Manor has made several revisions to the plans for the first apartment building, such as adjusting its location to allows for the addition of a parking lot in addition to the planned underground parking lot.

Margut said the residents of Cornwall Manor were very excited to learn that construction on the Clubhouse was starting this month.

The Clubhouse at The Woods, a $13 million project at Cornwall Manor, broke ground on June 19, promising a two-level clubhouse with dining facilities, a gym and a golf simulator aimed at satisfying health and wellness needs of residents. (Will Trostel)

“We’ve been talking about it for years knowing we wanted to do it,” Margut said. “Well, now it’s done. So the residents were just ecstatic to know we were starting.”

“I told them it would take about a year and that year would be here before you know it.”

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VaselineJune 26, 2024

1 6 minutes read

Vaseline

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