Intelligent Design

HOW THE NEW CITRUS HEIGHTS HEALTH CENTER PRIORITIZED RESIDENTS TO AWARD-WINNING EFFECT.

By Ian. Stewart

Above: The Grand Staircase in the lobby features sets of three, five, and seven steps ascending to the landing.

Masons are Builders. But when it came time to construct the Citrus Heights Health Center at the Masonic Homes campus in Covina, which opened in 2024 to offer skilled nursing care and short-term rehab services, the list of considerations went far beyond the bounds of the speculative craft.

Enter Matt Smith, principal of SmithGroup, the architectural design firm behind not just Citrus Heights but also the Pavilion building and renovations to the Adams and Wollenberg residences at the Masonic Homes in Union City. In each case, the result has been a seamless blend of functional and fraternal cues that creates an atmosphere that’s comfortable, safe, and welcoming. On the heels of winning two major awards, from the International Interior Design Association and from Senior Housing News, we spoke with Smith about his work in Covina and what goes into making a senior home actually feel homey.

California Freemason: How did you first get involved with the Citrus Heights project?

Matthew Smith: We’ve been working with the Masonic Homes for almost 10 years now, which is when we first started talking about the project, identifying the needs and recognizing that they didn’t have the capacity on campus for this kind of skilled nursing. So that was the challenge: to see how we could add that service to the campus and create a building that fit in with its surroundings. This was the first project we worked on with the Masonic Homes, and it happened to take longer than our subsequent projects to finish. We were also the architects on the renovations of the Adams and Wollenberg buildings in Union City and the Pavilion there, but we actually started in Covina first.

CFM: What was your design inspiration for the building?

MS: A couple of pieces came together to inform the design. One was the main administration building, the original A. Quincy Jones midcentury modern building. That architecture was a big influence on the exterior design. That’s why we’ve got all the concrete masonry units around the building and the stucco and wood—all those materials you see around the campus now. And then the other was the campus itself. The courtyards and spaces in between the buildings here are just as impor- tant as the buildings themselves. That was some- thing we picked up on—an opportunity to create another courtyard space. What helped with that was that we went with an L-shaped design that put the nursing station at the intersection of the two wings. That created all kinds of great synergies, and by having that L shape, we were able to create a new courtyard that could be a secure garden space for the memory-care residents but also gardens for the public residents.

CFM: How else did the fact that it’s a skilled nursing building factor into the design?

MS: The nursing station is often the heart—the focal point—of these kinds of facilities. When we interviewed staff, they talked about how at Lorber (skilled nursing in Union City), all the residents would gather around that station. We embraced that but also made it a little smaller, so the staff were actually out with the residents. People love how the living room, kitchen, and dining room are the focus here. The nursing station isn’t the only focus of the shared space.

Above: A square and compass is inset into the carpet outside the nurse’s station. Opposite a dinning area and living room.

CFM: This is, after all, a fraternity with a lot of iconography. How did you try to incorporate Masonic elements in the design?

MS: There were a couple of little subtle items. Well, one wasn’t so subtle: The Masonic Homes logo is inset into the carpet outside the care hub, so that’s there for everyone to see. But we also used a screen device between the living and dining room with patterning, which is a very midcentury modern technique, in the main entrance, which has a Masonic motif. And the grand staircase, in a nod to the way people ascend through the Masonic ranks, goes up three, five, and then seven stairs to the landing.

CFM: One of the risks in designing senior homes is creating an overly medical or institutional feeling. How did you get around that?

MS: In term of the design, it’s like a modern house with an open living room, dining room, and kitchen, and then off to the side, there’s this little work station. So when I’ve visited, I’ve seen the nurses out with their residents in the dining room, not at their desks, doing activities in those spaces. That’s what it’s supposed to be about: getting people out of their rooms. And then in terms of materials, we did everything we could. For the flooring, we used carpet or vinyl planks that look a lot like hardwood. We used tiles in the bathrooms—just little things with the finishes. The rooms have drywall ceilings instead of acoustic ceiling tile. The living room and dining rooms have wood ceilings, which helps with acoustics. Those regular ceiling tiles look so institutional. A bunch of things like that. That’s why it’s so nice to get the IIDA award. Designers recognize that what’s good design and what’s homey is not some 1950s crown molding or a flowery fabric couch. That’s what’s nice about California—the definition of home is a little broader and more modern here.