University-Based Retirement Communities (UBRCs) are redefining what it means to age well by bringing together students, faculty, and older adults in vibrant, intergenerational settings centered on learning, wellness, and purpose. Projects like Mirabella at Arizona State University (ASU) have already proven how powerful this model can be, where residents live steps from classrooms, share campus amenities, and engage in daily university life.

Mirabella at ASU

At Ankrom Moisan, we see UBRCs as the next frontier of integrated design – where the combined expertise of our Senior Living, Healthcare, Workplace, and Housing/Higher Education studios creates holistic campuses that serve people at every stage of life. Building on what we learned through Mirabella ASU and across our four studios, we are exploring how to take this model even further: adding new layers of wellness, education, childcare, and housing that foster deeper connection and shared purpose across generations.

Each studio brings distinct strengths from healthcare planning and senior living design to student housing typologies, workplace wellness, and early learning environments. Together, we’re shaping campus models that function as micro-ecosystems for every age, where learning, living, and well-being are seamlessly intertwined.

A Paradigm Shift in Campus Living: Mirabella at ASU

Mirabella at ASU represents a true paradigm shift in how we think about aging and community. Rather than creating an isolated retirement tower, it established a vibrant, intergenerational environment at the heart of Arizona State University’s campus, where older adults, students, and faculty live, learn, and engage side by side.

This project redefined what a university-based retirement community can be. Residents aren’t separated from the energy of campus life; they’re part of it by attending classes, mentoring students, and sharing dining, wellness, and cultural amenities with the broader ASU community.

Mirabella ASU’s grab-and-go café

The next evolution builds on that foundation, imagining complete, integrated campuses that bring together fitness and wellness centers, childcare, healthcare access, dining, cowering, and shared gathering spaces in places that connect students, faculty, staff, and seniors in meaningful, everyday ways.

Mirabella ASU proved that aging in place doesn’t have to mean aging apart. It’s the model for a new kind of campus living as one build on connection, purpose, and belonging.

Bridging Generations Through Design: The Student Housing Perspective

Student housing design has always been about creating communities filled with connection, engagement, and belonging that help young adults learn, live, and grow together. Those same principles can seamlessly bridge generations when applied to UBRCs.

Imagine a twin-tower development, such as The Standard at Seattle, where one tower houses university students and the other is home to active seniors. The two are connected by a shared podium filled with vibrant, mixed-use amenities: cafés, fitness studios, classrooms, art and maker spaces, and co-working lounges. Each of those spaces would be designed for learning and social interaction. Shared outdoor terraces, dining areas, and recreation zones encourage spontaneous connection, creating a campus environment where age becomes secondary to curiosity and engagement.

The Standard at Seattle High-Rises

In this model, the building itself becomes the connector, blending academic residential, and social functions into one cohesive experience. Students gain mentorship, shared resources, and intergenerational friendships; seniors benefit from access to lifelong learning, energy, and inclusion.

The 818, another student housing project currently under construction in Tucson, Arizona, is a similar asset for students at the University of Arizona. It has a mixed program of student and workforce housing that share the same amenities—courtyards, co-working lounges, fitness spaces, and community rooms; all designed to bring people together. Even though The 818 isn’t a UBRC, it carries the same spirit: people from different walks of life living side by side, connected through shared spaces that encourage learning, curiosity, and community. 

By drawing on existing student-housing typologies, such as flexible study lounges, collaboration zones, and integrated wellness amenities, the next generation of UBRC campuses can redefine what community looks like – vibrant, multigenerational environments that foster purpose, learning, and well-being for every resident.

Designing for Daily Life: The Workplace Perspective on UBRCs

A thriving campus community depends on the well-being of the people who live, work, and care within it. Our Office / Retail / Community Studio brings that understanding to every project in designing spaces that strengthen connection, balance, and retention for both employees and residents.

At the Daimler Truck North America Headquarters, our team designed an on-site daycare that became a cornerstone of the company’s employee experience. Providing childcare wasn’t just about convenience; it was about supporting people holistically and recognizing that when employees can see their kids during the day, they’re happier, more focused, and more likely to stay long-term.

The expanded daycare at Daimler Truck’s North American Headquarters

That same principle applies to university-based retirement communities (UBRCs) by integrating everyday amenities such as early learning centers, flexible workspaces, wellness studios, and community cafés. UBRCs can become places where generations intersect naturally by imagining a campus where a retired educator volunteers in the daycare, or where staff and residents share a morning fitness class or a coffee at the café. Those moments of overlap make the community stronger and more human.

Designing for intergenerational interaction is the next evolution of campus planning by taking lessons from workplace design such as transparency, flexibility, wellness, and access to services. When those lessons are applied to UBRCs, they can create environments that support everyone’s quality of life, from residents to caregivers to employees.

Integrating Health and Housing: The Healthcare Perspective for UBRCs

At the Central City Concern (CCC) Blackburn Center, we brought together healthcare, housing, and recovery services under one roof by creating a model where people can live, heal, and grow in an integrated setting. It’s a project that embodies the power of trauma-informed and human-centric design, connecting dignity, safety, and holistic well-being in every detail.

CCC Blackburn Center

In behavioral health and wellness design, connection and collaboration are everything for not only the people who use the space, but also for the many stakeholders who help shape it. For Blackburn Center, our studio worked closely with an extraordinary range of partners: clinicians, case managers, housing operators, state licensing agencies, and funders. Together, we developed a program that met people where they are, responding to the real needs of those navigating recovery, housing instability, and health challenges.

The Blackburn Center was a complex puzzle, combining a federally qualified health clinic, substance use recovery programs, short-term housing, long-term studios, and supportive services within one facility. Each group had distinct needs and operational priorities, and our challenge was to weave them together while maintaining safety, dignity, and belonging.

Our design focused on supporting different levels of care and wellness through shared amenities: community kitchens, large resource area with teaching kitchen, yoga spaces, clinic, urgent care, pharmacy, gathering spaces, and multiple outdoor terraces. These spaces foster connection rather than separation. Keeping these populations together was intentional – it reduces stigma and reinforces that healing happens through community.

For future UBRCs, that same principle applies. Integrating healthcare and housing on one site ensures residents have access to care before a crisis occurs, while promoting engagement and wellness across generations. At the Blackburn Center, we learned health, housing, and community are inseparable and that the model of integrated care and shared amenity spaces where they intersect can translate beautifully to UBRCs where physical and emotional well-being are equally prioritized.

What makes the next generation of university-based retirement communities so exciting is the opportunity to merge expertise across markets – to think beyond traditional senior living and design campuses that truly serve the full spectrum of life.

The Integrated Future of UBRCs

At Ankrom Moisan, our Senior Living, Workplace, Healthcare, and Housing/Higher Education studios each bring a unique perspective, but together they share one common goal: to design communities that foster connection, purpose, and well-being. From hospitality-inspired living and intergenerational engagement to on-site healthcare, early learning, and student-driven social spaces, these campuses can be vibrant ecosystems where people of all ages live, learn, and thrive together.

Our experience designing projects like Mirabella at ASU, Daimler Daycare, CCC Blackburn Center, and The Standard at Seattle has shown us that successful communities don’t just meet people’s needs; they evolve with them. The future of UBRCs lies in integration – blending living, learning, working, and wellness into places that feel human, connected, and alive.

As we look ahead, our vision is clear: to help universities and their partners design campuses that blur generational boundaries, celebrate lifelong learning, and embody the next chapter in community design where every space supports growth, belonging, and the shared experience of living well at every age.

Mariah Kiersey

Healthcare Studio Leader

mariahk@ankrommoisan.com

(503) 952-1344 1344

Ryan Miyahira

Senior Communities Studio Director

ryanm@ankrommoisan.com

(503) 892-1320 1320

Darla Esnard

Senior Communities Studio Director

darlae@ankrommoisan.com

(503) 977-5243 5243

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Jason Jones

Higher Education Studio Leader

jasonj@ankrommoisan.com

503-952-1339

Bethanne Mikkelsen

Office / Retail / Community Studio Leader

bethannem@ankrommoisan.com

(503) 952-1593 1593