Alpenglow short-stay assisted living was developed as an expansion of the services offered by Orthopedic Physicians of Alaska (OPA) to give patients a place to recover after surgery. Due to the short length of patient stays, the atmosphere was modeled after an upscale hotel. The dining room is set up as a warming kitchen with prepared food options so patients can have meals on their own schedule.
The project was technically challenging because it was an addition to an existing building that had to stay operational. The overnight stay component triggered code requirements for a higher level of fire resistance, which meant upgrading parts of the existing building. Egress and access had to be carefully reviewed to account for the mix of day and nighttime operations.