Hwaseong Silver Dream Center Design Competition

“Ninety Springs” is a caregiving diary written by historian Kim Gi-hyeop while caring for his mother in the final years of her life. We borrowed the title for its dual meaning: the ninety springs experienced over the course of one person’s life, and the spring experienced by each of the ninety residents. Upon entering a nursing home, older adults often experience a sense of “homelessness.” This refers not simply to the loss of a physical place or space to live, but to the loss of personal identity, the severing of social relationships, the loss of memories and recollections, and restrictions on self-determination.

For older adults to remain active agents of their own lives rather than merely subjects of management and care, nursing homes need to shift from facilities for survival to “places for living.”

We arranged spaces of personal, semi-personal, semi-public, and public character in a balanced manner and introduced two loops—the Village Path and the Park Path. These walking routes allow residents to selectively connect different spaces and shape their own spheres of everyday life. Through this approach, we hope the Hwaseong Municipal Silver Dream Center will become a third home where personal dignity is preserved, experiences are expanded, and everyday life continues.