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Photos: See Peconic Landing’s new and improved facilities

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Entering the lobby at Peconic Landing in Greenport, visitors and residents of the retirement community immediately get a sense of the overall changes the property has undergone over the past year and a half, including a theme reminiscent of the beach.

The $46 million expansion project comes complete with an art studio, fitness lounge, aerobics studio, massage room and juice bar. Many existing spaces have also been updated, including dinning and shopping areas, as well as the auditorium and pool.

As for housing, three new buildings were built: A 46-unit apartment building for seniors called West Apartments; a short-term rehabilitative care living area known as The Bluffs; and a 16-suite assisted living facility named Harbor South, which is designed specifically for those living with dementia or other cognitive issues.

During a media tour of the facilities Monday, Robert Syron, president and chief executive officer of Peconic Landing, said the expansion project has created about 60 new jobs since construction began in Sept. 2014.

“We want to always be able to create a journey for our residents in all different areas of their lives,” he said. “This is a big investment for us because we know it’s a great opportunity for them.”

In the fitness center, a HUR key card system was also installed. The company designs fitness machines to help seniors stay active by recording their workouts. Before a member uses a fitness machine, they scan their card and the amount of reps, as well as suggested weight, will appear on a monitor.

“We announced it was opening at 11 o’clock [this morning] and we had 19 people set up cards in two hours,” said Carmine Arpaia, fitness manager.

A new outdoor therapy center was also added, equipped with shuffleboard and basketball courts. There’s also an area to help residents practice walking on different surfaces, including grass, brick and wooden planks.

“Folks that are cognitively impaired lose a lot of sensation when it comes to touching or feeling,” said Vinny Tirelli, head groundskeeper. “We’re going to put a lot of textures and types of plants … All kinds of different things that bring out the senses that someone with cognitive impairment might have lost.”

What activity each resident would be best suited to, as well as his or her daytime schedules, will be determined by an individual care plan that their family and friends fill out with information about the patient’s personality.

Laurelle Cassone, director of sales and marketing at Peconic Landing, said the expansion was done with both the current and future residents in mind.

Throughout the process, residents received copies of the plans, which they annotated and returned, she said, adding construction plans were then created with those comments in mind.

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Top photo: A dining area at the new Harbor South assisted living facility. (Credit: Nicole Smith photos)

Click on the images below for more photos.