Luxury retirement condominiums and a medical center under one roof?

A perfect marriage, says John Erickson, president of the Malibu Corporation of Bainbridge Island, which recently broke ground on just such a mixed-use complex in April.

Eighteen amenity-rich condos will top a medical clinic on Bainbridge Island’s Ericksen Avenue when the Meridian is completed in December.

Quality-of-life considerations for condo residents and enhancements the for community drove planning of this project, Erickson said, citing the need for expanded medical facilities and comfortable “downsized” but independent living accommodations for a maturing population on Bainbridge Island as key motivations for the project.

Architecturally designed in the style of a Northwest resort, the building will sit on an L-shaped property that wraps around the Maloof Dental Building on the corner of Ericksen Avenue and Knechtel Way, forming a medical-dental campus at ground level.

“To be successful as condos,” Erickson said, “people have to want to be here.” Services and facilities resembling those of a resort or luxury hotel will support that goal.

“It’s within walking distance of downtown Winslow, the Safeway-Village shopping area, the ferry, the library, restaurants, the movie theater,” Erickson said. Parking will be underground and gated. The grounds will be landscaped and laced with trails that will connect with the city’s roads and paths to further the pedestrian-friendly environment called for by the Winslow Master Plan.

The resort theme carries over into the interior, as well.

“We want it to be like a luxurious hotel,” said project architect Dennis Kirkpatrick of Kirkpatrick and Associates, a Bainbridge Island firm.

At the front entrance, a spacious lobby will serve both the residential and commercial spaces. It will have a lounge area, food service, and patio access to encourage social contact and a sense of community, Erickson said. Residents will receive mail and arrange for other services at a concierge station. The commercial spaces will use the lobby as an initial reception area.

A “grand” staircase will sweep from the lobby to the second and third floors, although elevators will also operate on all four levels.

Priced from $225,000 to $512,000, the single-level condos have one, two, or three-bedrooms and from 660 to 1800 square feet. All will have fully applianced kitchens, gas fireplaces, private balconies, and cable TV and data transmission hook-ups. Residences on the second floor will have nine-foot ceilings and, on the third floor, vaulted ceilings and skylights.

Second-floor units will open onto a common library and lounge with a butler kitchen for group entertaining.

Each condo entryway will be recessed into an alcove with wainscoting, recessed lighting, and wood-paneled doors to create the sense of individual private homes in a neighborhood, Erickson said.

“The craftsmanship has to be quality, like a fine boat,” said Bruce McCurdy, Malibu Corporation CEO. “We’re not cutting corners. If anything, we’re catching ourselves putting too many upgrades in.”

The condos are intended for active independent retired residents (at least one occupant must be 55 years old), but architecturally designed details — such as handrails on wainscoting and grab knobs in showers — will assist residents to “age in place,” according to Jeanette Franks, gerontologist specialist at the University of Washington, and project consultant.

Franks advocates “universal design,” making things aesthetically pleasing but at the same time functional.

“It requires a lot of forethought,” Erickson said, but the “aging in place” concept was a defining theme in the planning stages.

Residents will also have access to many services, most of them on a pay-as-you-use basis, Erickson said: A town car and driver for transportation needs; on-site food service for individual meals or for catering a gathering; physical therapists, a small health center, and a swimming-spa pool.

The entire complex will have security features to ensure the safety and privacy of residents and their property.

The medical center will occupy just under 15,000 square feet of the main floor. Malibu personnel are in conversation with area medical providers, Erickson said, but have not come to any agreements as yet.

The main approach to the building will be from Ericksen along a winding driveway through trees and Northwest-style gardens. Erickson said he does not expect the building to be very noticeable from Ericksen Avenue.

From Knechtel, the building will be more visible, but the developers believe the walking paths will create a “European village feel.” A covered bus stop near the entrance will support the pedestrian emphasis.

Malibu Corporation, a Bainbridge Island-based firm, will be the general contractor for the project. Interior design will be by C. Burkland Interiors, also a Bainbridge Island business.