07.12.2021

Herne-Horsthausen: Cureus starts construction of Belia Senior Residence with 80 care places

• 80 care places for full, short-term and respite care, including dementia living group
• Residence preserves listed facade and historic park grounds of the former administrative headquarters of the Friedrich der Große colliery
• In-house public restaurant, hair salon, laundry, lounge with library and therapy bath
• Property built to the highest modern standards and KfW 40 energy-efficiency standards
• Residence to be operated by the care specialist Belia Seniorenresidenzen
• Cureus – an integrated care home property company – will integrate the new facility into its property portfolio
• Completion and opening scheduled for end of Q1 2023
• Residence will create c. 45 new and secure long-term jobs

Hamburg/Winsen (Aller)/Herne, 7 December 2021. Cureus, an experienced integrated property company for inpatient care homes in Germany, which is developing its portfolio by itself, has received approval for the construction of the Belia senior residence Herne and will start work soon. The care specialist, Belia Seniorenresidenzen, will operate the residence after its completion at the end of Q1 2023. The developer and owner of the building is Cureus.

“Belia stands for Better Living in Old Age”, explains Andreas Anspach, Managing Director of Belia Seniorenresidenzen, “and that is precisely what we will be providing at the new senior residence in Herne. We plan to open at the beginning of spring 2023 and then, in addition to modern care places for full, short-term and respite care, we will also be offering a special living group for dementia patients”.

The approx. 9,200-square-metre property at Albert-Klein-Straße 1 is located between Roonstraße and Luisenstraße in 44628 Herne in the district of Horsthausen. The property is the former home of the administrative headquarters of the Friedrich der Große colliery and later the district church office. The west facade of the former main building and the surrounding park with its impressive tree-lined street and two gatehouses are listed and will be preserved.

“Most recently, we carefully demolished the old building structures and, at considerable expense, ensured the protection of the listed west facade of the former administration building in order to integrate it into our new construction work”, explains Uwe Poganiatz-Heine, Project Manager at Cureus. “In the future, visitors and residents will be able to access the park from the residence’s restaurant via the west section of the building. Assuming there are no interruptions, we will complete the residence at the beginning of spring 2023 after a construction period of only 15 months and hand it over to our long-standing operating partner Belia for a prompt opening”.

Modern senior residence with extensive range of services

The fully barrier-free senior residence will have c. 5,500 square metres of gross floor area (GFA) with four full above-ground floors and a recessed top floor. The ground floor welcomes residents and guests with its hotel-style lobby, a lounge with library, and a range of amenities including a hair salon, therapy rooms and an in-house laundry. The residence’s restaurant will offer freshly prepared cuisine and will also be open to the public. The adjoining terrace creates a pleasant connection to the historic park surrounding the senior residence and extends to the west with plenty of lush vegetation.

On the upper floors, 80 single rooms with private bathrooms meet the highest modern standards and all rooms are wheelchair-accessible. All rooms can be individually furnished by the residents to create a homely ambience and a private retreat. The residence is divided into three living areas, each with its own lounge with kitchenette and balcony, creating a more intimate, family-like atmosphere for residents. The living group on the recessed top floor has eleven places and is specially designed to meet the needs and daily routine of dementia patients.

The entire Belia Senior Residence in Herne will be barrier-free and is designed and being built to the stringent KfW 40 energy-efficiency standard. A combined heat and power plant (CHP) will supply heat to the residential complex with biogas and produces electricity at the same time. Sections of the residence’s flat roof will be extensively greened, thereby helping to retain rainwater and positively impact the microclimate. In terms of design, the building will also be particularly in tune with its surroundings. In particular, the residence’s bright, rectilinear exterior will harmonize with the preserved historic facade to create an eye-catching architectural highlight.

“In all Belia residences, we aspire to create environments that encourage interaction and cultivate a sense of community and sociability for our residents”, explains Andreas Anspach. "Our ‘open house’ concept means that the restaurant, hair salon and park will be accessible to the local community and enable our residents to participate in the social life of the surrounding area. An extensive program of events will also contribute help establish links to the community”.

Ideal location and high-quality construction

The immediate area around Belia Senior Residence in Herne is home to a large number of shops, doctors, social and leisure amenities. The area has excellent links to public transport, with nearby bus stop and a train station, providing convenient access to the residence for residents, visitors and staff. The residence is equipped with 15 car parking spaces in the courtyard, two of which are fully accessible, and 10 bicycle parking spaces.

The new senior residence will be designed and built in accordance with the Cureus standard for system care homes. This standard is based on exacting and uniform quality standards and is oriented to the needs of all stakeholders, including care home operators and residents. Care homes built to the Cureus standard are optimised in all respects. This concerns, for example, the size and arrangement of rooms to optimize space and walkways. Cureus care homes are also designed and equipped for maximum utility: interior corridors benefit from as much daylight as possible, every room has floor-to-ceiling windows that provide attractive views of the surrounding area, and the modern bathrooms and window fronts follow the same standardised system approach. Each complex’s architecture and facade incorporate individual touches and are constructed to the highest quality standards, integrating seamlessly into their surroundings. Th Cureus system approach also prioritises sustainability, both in terms of a care home’s long-term economic viability and its impact on the environment. All Cureus care homes are, for example, constructed in accordance with the ‘Effizienhaus-40-Standard’ (former KfW 40 energy-efficiency standard), while the bulk procurement of floor coverings or elevator systems, for example, ensures cost synergies and long-term maintenance contracts covering several properties also reduce costs for care home operators. The constant review and optimisation of the Cureus system care home standard guarantees the construction of care homes that truly meet demand.