Commercial Project: Somerset Clubhouse, Lincoln, NE

October 1, 2008 by shawdesigns

Background
If you’ve ever been apartment shopping, you know what a tremendous impact your first impression of the clubhouse has. If it’s warm and inviting, with a style that makes you feel proud to host friends, then it’s easy to assume the apartments are also well-maintained and stylish.

Bringing the Somerset Clubhouse in Lincoln, Nebraska out of the 90’s was a challenge, and I LOVE a challenge! As always, there were aspects of the décor that couldn’t be changed, like the blue and burgundy faux finish on the walls, the plentiful white plastic verticals, and the builder-grade kitchen cupboards. Working these features into the transformation is one of my favorite parts, because it illustrates that it doesn’t take a major overhaul to create a huge impact.

Working with a limited budget is also a common situation with my clients, but it just makes me more determined to get creative!

The Project
The Somerset Clubhouse serves a dual purpose. It’s not only available for residents to host parties, it’s also where the leasing office is located and where prospects first encounter the Somerset community. Whatever we decided to do needed to support both purposes.

First, we looked at the windows. Custom window treatments were out of our budget range, so I found sheer swags that were long enough to use as panels on either side of all the windows. The result was adding soft texture and elongating the tall windows and high ceilings.

Because residents are constantly entertaining in the clubhouse, creating various areas where residents and their guests can gather was essential. There’s comfy seating around the fireplace, a great conversation area around a high table and chairs with easy viewing of the TV and fireplace, and additional seating around the new kitchen counter.

Outside the entertaining area is a large, open lobby area, so I arranged the furniture to create an inviting reception area with comfortable seating, and an engaging display of information and brochures regarding the Somerset community.

Now you see…
Multi-purpose spaces can be designed to function seamlessly with just a few touches that coordinate the different areas of the room.