The Relationship Between Third Places and Social Wellness

 Having been stuck in one place for more than a year, I have been thinking a lot about the concept of “third places” and their role in social wellness.

ChicagoParkDistrict.com

Third places, as defined by Ray Oldenburg in his 1999 book The Great Good Place (and its follow-up called Celebrating the Third Place), are neutral territory; public places where people gather, exchange ideas and have a good time. Third places, writes Oldenburg, "host the regular, voluntary, informal, and happily anticipated gatherings of individuals beyond the realms of home and work." Such places, he argues, are crucial for building community vitality, democracy and civil society. In my own less lofty terms, third places promote the types of interactions that have the potential to sprout friendships and meaningful social relationships.

According to the National Institutes of Health, there is growing evidence showing that social networks and community involvement, the building blocks of social wellness, have positive health consequences. Persons who are socially engaged with others and actively involved in their communities tend to live longer and be healthier physically and mentally. 

cambridge.org

So clearly, there’s a need to create structures to enhance social wellness. Enter third places, where people can regularly socialize in unprogrammed and informal ways. Those places might be community gardens and parks, neighborhood pubs, or for the fortunate few, country clubs. Whatever form they take, third places should serve as forums for social interaction. The most popular third places tend to be easy to get to, either close to home (your first place) or to work (your second place). The quality of propinquity encourages both spontaneity and regularity.

In recent years, Starbucks has bastardized the concept of the third place. Theoretically, a local coffee shop could be a third place. But the key to being an authentic third place is social interaction. What I see when I enter a Starbucks (flashing back to 2019) is a bunch of cappuccino-sipping cosmopolites who are basically alone together. They are all ensconced in their own little worlds, typing away at keyboards while further cutting themselves off from the world with their earbuds.

Alone together
starbucksreserve.com

This scene is diametrically opposed to the social construct of a third space. Alone together does not cut it.  A true third place encourages informal conversation and shared experiences on a frequent basis, thereby building a sense of social cohesion. After all, it is only by repetition that we build up relationships.

Our pandemic year forced our first place to become our second and third place as well, and we know how that’s been. Our homes have been converted into places of total retreat from the outside world. With second and third places largely confined to virtual realms, we have quickly discovered that the online world is no substitute for in-person interactions, particularly when it comes to building social relationships.

offset.com

There’s a pent-up desire for IRL human interaction. When things get back to whatever normal is going to be, people will be seeking out third places where they can reconnect with others. That’s why, in a post-COVID world, there is a real opportunity for those in the real estate realm, whether working in retail, residential or office space, to build third places into their development or retrofit plans.

Look, after a year of being conditioned to work and shop at home, businesses are going to be struggling to convince consumers and employees to do their things away from home. Meanwhile, people are reconsidering where they live, as more jobs become virtual and the value of knowing your neighbors comes back into vogue. Knowing that demand for third places is strengthening, architects, developers and urban planners will all have to start factoring in third places that encourage social wellness. In upcoming posts, I will examine these ideas in greater depth.  

The Nature of Green Wellness Communities

The COVID-19 crisis has given everyone a new perspective on the importance of integrating nature into our everyday lives. Pre-pandemic, we were busy hurtling from home to job, usually in cars or crowded public transportation, often in busy urban areas, with little time built in to experience the great outdoors.

During the past few months, nature has provided a bit of relief to millions of people in search of physical and mental health. Breathing in fresh air, enjoying the aromas of nature, feeling a relaxing breeze, hearing birds singing and looking up at the stars have served as natural tonics for anxiety and cabin fever. Indeed, the lockdown has taught us that people need landscapes. In this digital age, the value of the IRL natural world is finally back where it should be--front and center.

This renewed appreciation of nature as a contributor to health and wellness will be one of the long-lasting outcomes of this era. Going forward, that is likely to translate into a greater desire for residential neighborhoods and public spaces that emphasize wellness components. 

The way urban and community planners think about space will change following the pandemic, according to Pablo S. Massari, an associate principal at EDSA, a Florida-based landscape architecture firm. Parks and outdoor environments will be prioritized and re-imagined. “In Victorian times,” he said, “people noticed cities getting unhealthier, so they developed parks with canopies and shade. In recent decades, those natural features have been crowded out by tennis courts and playgrounds and skating parks. (But today), most outdoor spaces today are overly programmed for recreation and sports, with very little space for canopy and trails.” Now is the time to change that, he said, by bringing back canopy and greenery, both in parks and in residential areas. 

Courtesy: Congress for the New Urbanism

In terms of community planning then, as new neighborhoods are designed, green space is key. A priority should be put on the ability to traverse the neighborhood by foot or bike. Developing neighborhood greenways, low-traffic streets where bicyclists and walkers get priority over motorists, or dedicated trails for non-motorized vehicles can help do the trick. Communal gardens and outdoor “open play” areas are other features that can add green elements and opportunities for human connection, both of which are key to wellness.

The 19th Hole

When we discuss wellness, we are talking about it holistically. It is not solely human health that we seek to improve, but also the environment at large. That is why, when discussing wellness communities, we should reconsider the idea of homes built around a golf course. Golf courses are known water guzzlers, and the use of fertilizer and pesticides to maintain their manicured lawns are not good for the environment. Furthermore, golf courses located near protected or sensitive areas can have negative impacts on local flora and fauna. 

According to EDSA’s Massari, particularly in areas where water is scarce, extra land should be used for less impactful forms of recreation, or for agriculture, both of which serve to benefit nature and people. 

Shining the Spotlight on Wellness Real Estate

The wellness zeitgeist has been permeating our culture during the past decade. People run around the world in search of wellness practices. At home, they spend spend thousands of dollars a year on SoulCycle and smoothies. Yet, what has been largely overlooked as the movement has exploded is the wellness of one's physical home and the neighborhood that surrounds it.

As most of us have been spending 24/7 inside for the last few months, the realization that home is where the health is has become a reality. Suddenly, there is an understanding that the home environment itself should be healthy and healing, from the quality of the air to the availability of sunlight to the materials used in construction. And, as we take short jaunts around our neighborhoods, we are increasingly appreciating the lure of outdoor features like tree canopy, green spaces, water and walking trails.

A running trail in Emilia-Romagna's Wellness Valley
Courtesy: Technogym

It's not surprising, then, that many experts predict that this pandemic will change the way people choose to live. Even before COVID, there were studies indicating that lifestyle and environmental factors account for nearly 85 percent of one's health outcomes. It's not a coincidence that during the lockdown, there’s been almost a primordial urge to return to arcadia, in the form of countryside, coastline or mountains.  At the same time, though, in isolation, people are realizing the importance of IRL connection and community.

That is why wellness real estate is set to experience its moment. The wellness real estate sector was already in a nascent state pre-COVID. But post-pandemic, the trend toward buying healthy homes and real estate in wellness communities will grow as more people take into consideration how their living environments support their physical, mental and emotional state of being. 

The Global Wellness Institute has been watching this trend develop over the past decade. According to Build Well to Live Well: Wellness Lifestyle Real Estate and Communities, wellness real estate was a $134 billion worldwide industry in 2017, and, at the time of the report, was expected to grow to $180 billion in 2022. Given that pandemic, expect that number to top $200 billion.

There are several important features of the communities that are actually walking the wellness walk. They include the use of natural and no-VOC materials in construction; the incorporation of biophilic elements in design, and an abundance of unprogrammed outdoor spaces (that means no golf courses and concrete-covered playground areas). A focus on community-building and social connection is another vital element of a true wellness neighborhood, one that is often overlooked by companies that are trying to glom on to the trend without really understanding the importance and the nuances of a holistic approach. This could result, for example, in larger front porches, smaller front yards and more communal spaces.

Over a series of blog posts, I will be exploring the key ingredients that every wellness community worth its salt must sport. Stay tuned.

Employing Nature As a Wellness Tourism Asset

Resources

Forest Bathing:

https://www.cnn.com/travel/gallery/new-spa-treatments/index.html

Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness Dr. Qing Li 

nationalforests.org

Isolation:

https://skift.com/2017/04/18/isolation-is-the-next-big-thing-in-luxury-travel/

https://skift.com/2019/04/02/how-the-faroe-islands-became-an-un-destination/

https://skift.com/2019/04/09/how-one-canadian-province-uses-icebergs-to-attract-visitors/

Quiet: 

https://skift.com/2017/08/01/the-canadian-nunnery-thats-become-a-wellness-retreat/

https://quietparks.org/about

Hot Springs:

visitidaho.org

www.hotspringsassociation.com

https://colorado.com/hotspringsloop

https://skift.com/2019/10/10/why-the-hot-springs-movement-is-gaining-steam-in-the-united-states/

Alternative Accommodations: 

https://skift.com/2019/07/30/luxury-accommodations-head-outdoors-in-creative-ways/

https://skift.com/2019/04/16/when-luxury-goes-small/

A Tiny House at Canoe Bay's Escape Village

Hotels Use Technology and Design to Evolve the Healthy Room

This article originally appeared in the Skift New Luxury Newsletter, for which I am the chief correspondent.

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Can a hotel room make you healthier? The jury is still out, but judging from some recent experiments, there may be more than a nugget of truth to the idea.

A Wellness Room at the Four Seasons Los Angeles at Beverly Hills

Delos, which pioneered the term “wellness real estate”, introduced the concept of an uber-healthy hotel room at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada back in 2012. It is now bringing its Wellness Rooms to the Four Seasons Los Angeles at Beverly Hills. At the same time, Swissôtel is expanding its own version of a healthy room.

In all cases, the idea is to incorporate health-boosting technologies and ambient design elements to improve wellness. We are talking about things like special lighting to counter jet lag, aromatherapy, dawn simulator alarm clocks, special air purification systems and wisdom from Deepak Chopra. Okay, only Delos has Chopra on board. His knowledge, along with that of the Cleveland Clinic, has been incorporated into the programs offered at MGM and Four Seasons.

The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills launched its partnership with Delos at the end of November 2017. Located on the hotel’s spa level, five wellness-themed guest rooms and two suites combine the latest technology from Delos, along with a stylish room aesthetic and the eco-chic features you would expect in L.A.

According to Michael Newcombe, general manager and chair of the company’s Global Spa and Wellness Task Force, the concept has potential to become ubiquitous.  Having a “room product dedicated to supporting a wellness-based lifestyle while on the road… is a choice that hoteliers will have to get used to.”  The concept will be tested through July 1, 2018, at which time guest feedback will be assessed. If guests give the thumbs up, the plan is to add more such rooms at the Beverly Hills property and beyond.

The Vitality Suite at Swissôtel Zurich 

Meanwhile, in Switzerland, a new wellness room concept is taking shape at Swissôtel. The Swissôtel Zurich is still tinkering with its Vitality Suite, which it introduced at the end of 2016. It’s an evolution of the company’s ongoing Vitality program aimed at “inspiring travelers to maintain an active and energized body and mind while on the road.” Until last year, that program had been focused on food and fitness offerings. But according to Lilian Roten, vice president of brand management for Swissôtel and Pullman,  “We realized that we had to bring this vitality focus into the guestroom… to package it up and build a room that would be the embodiment of vitality.”

And so, Swissôtel has reconfigured one of its conventional suites into a hardcore wellness sanctuary. Design elements include hardwood floors, soft color palettes, ergonomically-functional furniture, black-out blinds and bathrooms with spa features like aromatherapy and chromatherapy tubs.

There’s also a great deal of attention paid to allowing guests to personalize their experience. For example, company literature says, “In a first for the hotel industry, circadian light is accommodated on demand. Circadian light features allow light color to change, influencing the secretion of melatonin in the brain, helping travelers overcome jet-lag or lack of sunlight,” along with enhancing the quality of sleep.

The Wellbeing Wall in the Swissôtel Zurich's Vitality Suite 

Meantime, the built-in Wellbeing Wall offers guests a variety of training options, as it contains dumbbells, horizontal bars and cable-pull systems.  A multilingual cyber-trainer via a touch-screen monitor displays exercises geared towards strengthening, stretching, meditation and breathing.

There are plans to develop Vitality Rooms in North America and Asia. The Swissôtel Chicago is slated to be the first hotel outside of Switzerland to introduce the concept, most likely next year. In Asia, the company’s Singapore property will be the first to get an update.

“What we are looking into is evaluating what regional adaptations would be necessary to make rooms relevant for various markets,” said Roten.

At the same time, she notes, certain features will always be mandatory. Among them are floors uncovered by carpet; work areas with adjustable desks with options for standing or sitting; bathroom spa experiences; and a Wellbeing Wall. Inclusion of an air purification system will only be required in cities with air quality indexes above 50 (that’s you, Beijing).

While the Vitality Room per se will be exclusive to Swissotel, Roten says that other AccorHotels brands are likely to incorporate aspects of the concept over time.

Meantime, back in the United States, Delos Stay Well rooms have been introduced to half a dozen Marriott properties on the East Coast during the past year. Should Marriott and AccorHotels fully buy in, healthy rooms may prove to have legs beyond luxury brands.