A retirement nest like no other

Elderly people who are considering buying units in the new retirement village at the Omeya Golf Estate can rest assured that this not only represents a good financial investment, but also a pleasant and convenient area in which to live. That is the personal assurance given by Sonja van der Walt, who says she first looked deep into her own experience before demanding her own stake in the design of the units. “My mother lived with us for two years before she passed away. She had been living in the nursing home at Swakopmund for many years, but when she lost her ability to drive, she did not know where to go next. She was not bedridden, but still normal household tasks became too difficult for her to handle. That was when the idea of care and assistance for the weakened took hold with us. “Firstly we couldn’t do anything about her loneliness,” says Sonja, explaining the motivation behind the support service they will be offering at the resort. “Older people like to share their memories with their contemporaries, and so we decided to give them this opportunity within these one-bedroom units.” The units are designed to be as comfortable as possible: - With bathrooms large enough to fit a wheelchair into the shower or toilet; - An outlay designed for easy mobility between the kitchen, bedroom or garage; - Easy chairs and television sets should fit easily in the living room, as old people spend a lot of time there; - There is space for a washing machine in the bathroom, so they need not walk too far. - As many cupboards as possible have been installed; - A panic button is a necessity; - A garage is as important, with more space to make it easy to get in and out of cars; - Grandchildren will visit, so there has to be space for exercise and fun; - Drawers in the kitchen move easily; - Corner cupboards in the kitchen can be pulled out completely; - Also, the idea of a “schrebergarten” (German) or “allotment garden” (English) took shape. This is a small, private garden about 50 metres from each unit, where everyone can do what they want. This encourages interaction between neighbours. In the units where support services will be offered by nurses and helpers, the same principles count, but with the addition of elements such as: - Railings for getting up easier in toilets, and holding grips in showers; - Toilet seats are higher than normal to make standing up easier; - At least one meal per day is served in the communal dining hall, to motivate residents to leave their rooms; - In the community hall, they can sew, play cards, read, watch movies, do Bible study, or just socialise together. The care they offer is organised in such a way to preserve the residents’ dignity and make this emotional time easier to handle for the whole family. And with the beautiful camelthorn trees adorning the village, this should be a true oasis. Even in the two- and three-bedroom units, convenience was the biggest consideration: separate sculleries, bigger garages, open living spaces and nooks that can be used as a study, for example. “A house should be an easy living home, with enough storage and room to move. Our reasoning was that we would ourselves like to come and stay here when we reach that age, and so we planned it according to what we ourselves would have wanted,” says Van der Walt . All units will be fitted with double-glazed windows to better control temperature and with mosquito screens. All roofs are planned to easily accommodate solar heating systems in case the owner so wishes, and all units have under-floor heating in the living areas. In addition, geysers are being installed in the laundry drying areas, to make future repairs easier. All units are connected to an optical cable communication network.