Project category: Project in progress (August 2009)

Chief administrator: Mike Gentry, President & CEO, (386) 676-6002

Firm: HuntonBrady Architects, (407) 839-0886

Design team: Charles W. Cole, Jr., AIA, ACHA, Principal-in-Charge; Paul Macheske, AIA, Project Manager; Maurizio Maso, AIA, Design Principal (HuntonBrady Architects); Don Moe, PE, Principal Structural Engineer (Walter P. Moore & Associates); Mark Gelfo, PE, Principal MEP Engineer (TLC Engineers for Architecture)

Total building area (sq. ft.): 602,000

Construction cost/sq. ft.: $251

Total construction cost (excluding land): $151,000,000


The owner wanted this new hospital to be an icon that “sparkled in the sunshine and glowed at night,” to create an identity. The elliptical glass tower meets this criterion while also serving as the main entry/lobby and orienting element.

The 12-story, 602,733-sq.-ft. hospital is the centerpiece of the campus, which also includes an adjacent 170,000-sq.-ft. medical office building and detached central energy plant. The hospital will open with 245 staffed beds and contains shell space for 75 more beds. The massing of the complex consists of 1-, 3-, 5-, and 12-story components zoned as hospital support, diagnostic/treatment chassis, medical offices, and inpatient services, respectively. The stacking provides architectural interest and rhythm to the building forms. The bow on the lower floors creates a classic building base while providing for larger programs.

The Emergency Department’s “open architecture” configuration maximizes sight lines and staff accessibility to all points of care. Rooms are arranged to flex from fast-track to urgent-emergent as case load requires. Patient flow follows a “one-way street” pattern, reducing traditional operational bottlenecks.

The Heart Center contains cardiac catheterization/electrophysiology, cardiovascular surgery, and a prep/recovery center that serves both programs. The 14-bed Cardiovascular Critical Care and 36-bed Coronary Critical Care units are colocated to flex as needed.

The ellipse on patient floors contains staff lounges that offer views and natural light.