Genet Terrace Wellness Center

Genet Terrace Wellness Center takes its name and its organizing principle from a single idea: that healing happens not just in treatment rooms but in the spaces between them — in gardens, in light, in the transition from inside to out.

The client, a wellness operator seeking to differentiate their facility, recognized that most wellness centers treat outdoor space as leftover. My design inverts this: the terraced landscape is the primary organizing element, with indoor spaces arranged around it.

The result is a facility where every treatment room opens to a private garden, where circulation offers choices between efficient routes and contemplative paths.

The site's natural topography — a gentle slope across the property — became the design's generator. Rather than fighting the grade with a level building pad, I embraced it: the building steps down with the land, creating a series of terraces that feel natural rather than imposed.

Each terrace sits at a different elevation, connected by gentle ramps and occasional steps. This creates visual separation between outdoor zones without physical barriers.

The building wraps these terraces, creating edges that define without enclosing. Interior spaces open directly onto their adjacent terraces, making the outdoors an extension of the treatment program.

The wellness center's program divides into two broad categories:

Active wellness — fitness classes, movement therapy, rehabilitation — needs larger spaces with natural light and direct outdoor access. These functions cluster around the largest terrace, which can host outdoor yoga, tai chi, or group exercise.

Passive wellness — massage, meditation, counseling, relaxation — needs smaller, more private rooms with controlled light and acoustic privacy. These functions occupy a quieter wing, each treatment room opening to its own planted courtyard.

Between these zones, shared functions — reception, waiting, changing rooms, café — provide transition.

Natural light is therapeutic. Every treatment room is positioned to receive daylight, controlled through orientation, shading devices, and the depth of adjacent terraces.

Genet Terrace offers two circulation systems: Direct routes connect primary functions efficiently. A client can move from reception to treatment room without unnecessary wandering. Meandering paths offer an alternative — these routes pass through gardens, along water features, under tree canopies.

Both systems are legible. You're never lost — but you're given choices about how you want to move through space.

The material palette supports the wellness program: natural materials, warm tones, textures that invite touch.

Exterior walls combine smooth white render with sections of natural stone. Interior surfaces are predominantly light: white walls, light wood floors, neutral tones that create calm backgrounds.

Water appears at several moments: a reflecting pool at the entry, a small fountain in a contemplative garden. These are designed for sound as much as sight — the gentle movement of water masks background noise and creates the psychological sense of natural environment.

Genet Terrace Wellness Center is presented as a planning study demonstrating my approach to wellness architecture. The floor plan and program organization are developed; visualization and detailed design await project confirmation.

This project illustrates how I work at early stages: establishing clear organizational concepts, testing program relationships, and designing from landscape in rather than building out.