The existing north-facing dining area — located on the second floor of a 1970s building — has low ceilings, limited daylight and views to a service street, according to a statement from Bruner/Cott Architects. The new dining experience will be include renovating the existing 13,500 square feet of space and an addition of 1,500 square feet. The designers hope to greatly improve the interior environment, as it will join the two north pods of the second floor through an addition, replace the exterior building skin and completely renovate the cafeteria area to include enhanced seating for 292 guests. The additional introduction of large planting beds, natural light and views to the exterior, are part of a wider initiative by the hospital to bring a stronger presence of nature and respite to its campus, according to Bruner/Cott Architects.

The project team includes:
Owner: BWH/Partners HealthCare
Architect: Bruner/Cott Architects
General Contractor: Suffolk Construction
Food Service Consultant: Colburn & Guyette
Landscape Architect: KMDG
MEP Engineers: BR+A
Structural Engineers: McNamara Salvia
Lighting Designer: Lewis Lighting
Civil Engineer: VHB
Envelope Consultant: Gale & Associates

The exterior of the dining facility will feature a new glass addition that will provide views along Shattuck Street as well as the newly landscaped areas that will be visible to those inside. Along with crucial design elements, the entire dining menu is also being upgraded to provide healthy dining options that support the hospital’s mission of improving health.

The open-ceiling concept will feature wood grill decorative panels, terrazzo floors, quartzite counters, three-form decorative green glass and Porcelanosa large format sculptured wall tile.
 

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Chicago-based architect Bertrand Goldberg originally constructed the 13,500-square-foot dining room in the 1970s. With a cast-in-place concrete exterior and 4-foot-square windows, the cafeteria was a dark and enclosed space.

In order to improve the patient experience, Bruner/Cott & Associates, based in Cambridge, Mass., and New Haven, Conn.-based Cama Inc., formed a design team to tackle the overhaul. They incorporated evidence-based design concepts such as incorporating nature and daylight into the plan. Gone are the small windows and concrete exterior, now replaced with full-height glass walls and planting beds built off the side of the second-story cafeteria. The glass walls are also etched with an abstract grass pattern that becomes more translucent toward the top.

Inside, the team got rid of the windowless hallway that separated the two dining rooms, adding 2,000 square feet of dining space. The 292-seat area now includes high and low banquette seating options, an infused water station and a yogurt/juice bar. An expanded salad bar was relocated outside of the serving area to allow customers to more easily line up for meals. The catering kitchen and staging area were also moved to another floor.

Designers added aesthetic touches, including quartzite counters, an exposed ceiling, decorative green glass and sculptured wall tile, to the interior. Originally, the floor was going to be replaced with polished concrete, but construction workers found an original terrazzo floor underneath layers of carpet and rubber, which they decided to restore.

In addition to the cafeteria, Brigham and Women’s Hospital is working on a two-phase addition and renovation to the NICU, which should be completed by November 2017.
 

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More than 40 percent of Harvard Medical School students underwent clinical training at the teaching hospital in 2010. It currently has 793 beds and 43 operating rooms, and admitted more than 46,000 patients in 2010. Ambulatory visits have grown to more than 3.5 million per year.

The new Brigham Building for the Future will consist of eight floors of research laboratories, two floors of clinics, advanced imaging facilities, and a conference and teaching center, which will give BWH a proper amount of research space to maintain its leadership in medical research. The building anchors the Pike, a quarter-mile-long pedestrian circulation system that connects it to the existing hospital campus. A pedestrian bridge also connects the building to the existing Carl J. and Ruth Shapiro Cardiovascular Center, also built by Suffolk.

The clinic plans are designed for flexibility, which will maximize collaboration between disciplines. The neuroscience floor, for instance, will mix clinicians from 13 sub-specialties to give patients complete multidisciplinary care in one location.

The architect on the project is NBBJ, with offices in Boston. The company designed the building to achieve LEED Gold certification, with a facade of windows that allow daylight into the building. Sunshades on the exterior also allow the building occupants to use the daylight in accordance with their needs. Other green building features include a roof garden to reduce storm water runoff; a system that cleans and reuses storm water for mechanical equipment; and a co-generation plant to supply the building with electricity steam and hot water.

Construction is scheduled for completion in fall 2016.

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