Center for Health & Wellbeing Construction Begins
Photo by Chris Gotshall
Winter Park Health Foundation (WPHF) leaders, along with community supporters, recently celebrated that kick-off of construction on the new Center for Health and Wellbeing, formerly known as Project Wellness. At a ceremony held late last month, WPHF also announced it will partner with Florida Hospital in creation of this unique, one-stop facility for wellness, fitness and medicine.
The Center for Health and Wellbeing will emphasize taking care of not just the body, but the mind and spirit, too. The intentionally integrated facility will inspire healthy living, reverse chronic diseases and increase longevity.
3D illustration of the entire Center for Health and Wellbeing complex.
“Every part of the facility, from top to bottom, is designed to help people become and stay healthy,” according to Patty Maddox, president and CEO of the Winter Park Health Foundation. “This is especially important for a community such as Winter Park. More than 33,000 seniors live within five miles of where we’re building the new center, and this will give them a ‘one-stop shop’ with not only fitness facilities, but access to medical services and programs for wellness and wellbeing.”
The center will help people of all ages and fitness levels live longer and live better when it opens in late 2018.
“I believe the Center actually has the potential to change the way we age by transforming not only the way we view aging, but the way we live by providing new, vibrant services that up until this time maybe haven’t been available in your local community,” said Colin Milner, CEO of the International Council on Active Aging.
At nearly 80,000 square feet, the Center for Health and Wellbeing has been intentionally designed to support wellness, fitness and medicine.
3D Illustration of Commons
The wellness component will feature both prevention and education classes and programs throughout the center, but predominantly in two conference room spaces. At the heart of the building is an area called “The Commons.” This space will be used for indoor farmers’ markets, cafe seating, socializing, educational offerings and many other activities. It will also feature a healthy café as well as a “Nutrition Theater,” where activities such as cooking demonstrations will occur. Wellness will also be incorporated into the area surrounding the building, where there will be various gardens and a walking path for the entire community to enjoy.
Entrance to New Peggy & Philip B. Crosby YMCA
The fitness component will feature a new Peggy & Philip B. Crosby Wellness Center Y, operated by the Central Florida YMCA. The new Crosby Y will include two pools ? one with four lanes dedicated to lap swimming, and one specifically for warm-water therapy and aquatic exercise. It will also feature upgraded locker rooms; two large multipurpose fitness rooms for group exercise; a large, functional open space for exercise equipment and weights; and an expanded child watch area.
The medicine component will be anchored by Florida Hospital. The 15,000-square-foot space will feature medical offices and clinical spaces to be staffed by professionals and specialists, offering a one-stop shop for wellness and medical consultation. It will also be home to Florida Hospital Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, which will feature physical therapy, massage, and other integrative medicine services.
The new Center for Health & Wellbeing is located on a 4.2 acre site owned by WPHF near Winter Park Memorial Hospital. Part of WPHF’s development plans for the new facility include roadway improvements and traffic flow in this vicinity of Winter Park. At the late February event, the City of Winter Park dedicated the newly completed road which runs along the west side of the site. The new Crosby Way is named in honor of Peggy and Philip B. Crosby, the original benefactors to the Crosby Wellness Center when it originally opened in 1989.
3D view of Project Wellness from northeast perspective.
“We want to inspire people to get active and be healthy across their entire life span, and we look forward to our continued partnership with the Winter Park Health Foundation to accomplish our shared goals,” said Jennifer Wandersleben, administrator of Winter Park Memorial Hospital. “The Center for Health and Wellbeing will redefine our understanding of health through diverse, medically-based wellness services that provide our community unprecedented access to health professionals, services, knowledge and programs.”
For more information on the Center for Health and Wellbeing, visit www.wphf.org/chwb.
