More than 200 projects competing in categories ranging from education and health care to housing and commercial office space vied for this year’s Architectural Awards. Juries representing a cross section of industry experts selected the winners, recognizing the entire team of architects, contractors, project managers and developers who collaborated to create and build their visionary project.

A winner in the Under Construction category, Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, located in Downey, Calif., is one of the nation’s leading hospitals for rehabilitative medicine. The existing complex, which has been in operation since 1888, is owned and operated by the county of Los Angeles. It is located on the northern part of a 212-acre historic campus, to the southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. Drawing inspiration from the rich history of Rancho Los Amigos and a historic mission-style building on-site, the structures encircle a central plaza defining the heart of the campus, according to a statement by Taylor Design. An iconic tower references this architectural language, while emphasizing the campus’ central core and providing wayfinding cues.

Conceptually, the team referenced the weaving therapy that became synonymous with Rancho Los Amigos around the turn of the century, according to Taylor Design. The award-winning project, which is currently under construction, encompasses several structures including: renovation and extension to the existing Inpatient Hospital, a new Outpatient Building, and a new Wellness and Aquatics Center; all blending seamlessly into one cohesive campus.

The project, which broke ground in August 2015, is split into two phases. Phase I, which includes the Wellness & Aquatic Therapy Center, will be completed in August 2016. Additional Phase I work, which is scheduled for completion in 2018, entails the hospital extension and renovation, medical outpatient building, warehouse, and site and infrastructure improvements. Phase II, which includes construction of the outpatient facilities and renovations to research and administrative buildings, is scheduled to complete in 2020. The estimated cost of the project is $418 million. The estimate for Phase I alone is $210 million.

“It is a great honor to receive this recognition. We’re proud of the contribution we’ve made to the architectural landscape of Los Angeles with this outstanding campus. Taylor Design, SmithGroupJJR and McCarthy Building Companies have worked together with the Los Angeles Department of Public Works to honor the incredible legacy of Rancho Los Amigos,” said Taylor Design President D. Randy Regier, in a statement. “From the beginning, our team’s work was focused on the patient journey. This emphasis informed the planning and design to create an environment that supports the incredible level of patient care being delivered within this historic and important community health care campus.”

The team includes Executive Architect Taylor Design; Contractor McCarthy Building Companies Inc.; Design Architect SmithGroupJJR; Building Owner Los Angeles Department of Public Works; and Rancho Los Amigos.

“The winners of this year’s Architectural Awards demonstrate how exceptional architectural designs can inspire our community and invigorate our city while also addressing critical policy needs,” said Mary Leslie, president of the Los Angeles Business Council.

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The success of the Craig Hospital expansion is the result of the deep collaboration that took place early in the design process between Architect of Record RTA Architects based in Colorado Springs, Colo., and partner firm SmithGroupJJR, with offices nationwide, as well as general contractor GE Johnson, with offices in Denver, and hospital rehabilitation staff. The team united to resolve an extremely complex problem: how to build a new facility in and around an occupied traumatic brain injury (TBI) and spinal cord injuries (SCI) rehabilitation hospital with minimal disruption to patients and staff.

A critical starting point of the process was to pull in experts from all disciplines and break the enormous project into 22 phases. The planning phase took a full year, which began with a week of immersion at Craig Hospital by the design team. Using an integrated project approach with the general contractor, the team co-located at the Craig Hospital campus during concept and pre-schematic design to build the project plan, design and budget. The project team continues to meet on a routine basis at the on-site project trailers to provide a collaborative environment through to the completion of the project.

This theme of collaboration now extends throughout the entire facility. The new staff workstations are designed to encourage a team-oriented environment for therapists, doctors and nurses. Cozy bistros are located on each patient level of the hospital, offering space for families and staff to share meals with patients. Patient hallways are flared to widen at the north end to create family and patient sitting areas while accommodating expansive windows that stream natural daylight into and down the length of the hallway.

The details and finishes of the new Craig Hospital reflect the thoughtfulness and collaborative nature of the design process. The building is incredibly aesthetic with sand-colored walls that feature thematic nature-based artwork, and sound absorptive rubber flooring and acoustical ceiling tiles that create a tranquil serene atmosphere for patients. Even the lighting is designed to bathe the walls with warm, indirect light so that patients in wheelchairs don’t have the harsh experience of looking up into glaring ceiling lights.

Because the needs of TBI patients differ from those who have sustained SCIs the two groups have been placed on separate levels of the hospital. The top floor (level four) houses SCI patients and their brightly colored, active therapy gym. TBI patients are on level three, a quieter floor with a more tranquil gym. According to RTA Architects’ Paul Reu, all of the 52 beds are occupied, and the hospital maintains a waiting list.

Outside the front entrance, the architects designed a sensory garden, complete with wheelchair paths and raised plant containers positioned precisely at the height of a patient seated in a wheelchair so they are able to touch and smell the growing foliage. Water features provide an inviting node and add serene sounds to stimulate auditory development. The chapel — which is nearly complete — features a cork floor and pristine white stone accent wall with recessed shelves that can be adorned with items from any faith.

Craig’s PEAK Community Outpatient Rehabilitation Center has doubled in size with technology being the feature of this space. The floor of the therapy pool functions as an automated lift so that clients and patients in wheelchairs can be lowered into the pool, eliminating the need for a separate transfer lift.

Although the Craig Hospital footprint has expanded from 135,000 to 220,000 square feet, the patient capacity remains the same because the new facility now offers private suites with ample space for family to visit and confer with physicians and the rehabilitation team. Reu explained that the only pieces remaining to be completed are Craig’s outpatient clinic, outpatient therapy center, resident doctor’s office, and kitchen and servery renovations at the main cafeteria.

Sue Rose is the principal at Construction Writers Collaborative and owner of Sue Rose PR, based in Denver.

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The new building, attached to the main hospital, allows Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center to expand and centralize three medical specialties — cancer care, digestive health and outpatient surgery — in a single, integrated facility. The goal of the new center is to improve access to care, continuity among disciplines, enhanced operational efficiencies and a better overall experience for patients and their families. More than 20,000 patients are expected to be cared for in the building annually.

The Angelo P. Creticos Cancer Center, formerly situated in a building located at the southwest corner of Wellington and Mildred in Chicago, has been relocated to the north end of the Center for Advanced Care. The cancer center now has two new linear accelerators for targeted cancer treatment, 16 infusion bays and an educational resource area

The building provides seven times the medical center’s previous space dedicated for digestive health. Located on the south end, the Digestive Health Clinic features five new procedure rooms.

The Center for Advanced Care’s expanded outpatient surgery facilities, housed on the third floor over 38,000 square feet, have added six operating rooms and 18 prep and recovery rooms. Other amenities at the facility include a health resource library, conference facilities and a café.

The addition creates an integrated platform where patients and physicians can more easily access care resources, including a multi-disciplinary condominium clinic with flexible, universal exam and consult spaces.

“One of the goals of the project was to demystify the patient experience by creating a physical space that is warm, open and inviting,” said Tim Tracey, principal-in-charge at SmithGroupJJR’s Chicago office, in a statement. “The design of the new center represents the quality of care that patients receive at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center.”

Signature design elements for the Center for Advanced Care include a sweeping, curved glass façade on the south side with an integral passive sunshade system. Public corridors are outfitted with open seating and waiting areas, creating a way-finding system that connects the new building with the main hospital. At street level, a three-story glass atrium lobby and reception area help to set off the facility’s main entrance.

Sustainable design features include a living wall that will bloom year-round as part of a community garden, located in a 21,000-square-foot park that runs along the back of the building. The park provides pathways and outdoor benches for patients and visitors. Also sustainably designed is the building’s roof. The facility is targeting LEED-NC Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

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The $200 million facility welcomed patients on Oct. 1 as the first hospital to be built in the county in more than 35 years. The hospital is also the first in the country to be built on a community college campus and is the core of Montgomery College’s Hercules Pinkney Life Sciences Park.

Designed by Chicago-based SmithGroupJJR, the 237,000-square-foot, 93-bed hospital offers medical, surgical, obstetric and emergency services, and psychiatric care. The facility features a full-service emergency department with an adjacent observation unit; patient units for cancer care, dialysis and inpatient rehabilitation; a 15-bed ICU; two 30-bed inpatient units; and a behavioral health unit. There is a range of specialties for surgical services as well as full-service operating rooms and rooms for endoscopy and interventional radiology. Comprehensive maternity services are provided through labor and delivery rooms, cesarean surgical suites, private postpartum rooms and an eight-bed neonatal care unit.

The new hospital was designed to help with the challenges of health care delivery, according to a press statement from SmithGroupJJR. All of the hospital’s private patient rooms and staff zones were designed for operational efficiency as well as for the comfort and independence of patients and their families. Large windows provide daylight in-patient, staff and public areas, and decentralized nursing alcoves. Visitor seating bays are located along the public concourses, which helps simplify way-finding.

Applying evidence-based design methods, the objective for SmithGroupJJR’s designers was to create a healing, patient-centered environment. Features include a healing garden, landscaped roofs and soothing interior finishes.

“Our ability to meet our mission has been greatly enhanced by innovative design and attention to the details of providing care to those in need,” said Holy Cross Health President and CEO Kevin J. Sexton in a statement.

“Not only is the new hospital beautiful, but it features the latest platforms and innovations in health care delivery and architecture, including advanced medical technologies and interventional platforms for patient-focused care,” added William Kline, AIA, LEED AP, EDAC, who served as the principal-in-charge on the project, in a statement.

The hospital was constructed by Baltimore-based Whiting-Turner Contracting Company. Syska Hennessy Group, headquartered in New York, served as the prime MEP engineer alongside sub consultant partner, Eldridge, Md.-based Leach Wallace Associates.

The hospital, which serves nearly 200,000 patients each year, is seeking a LEED Silver rating.

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“Going to a hospital is not a fun thing. Patients are going there for a reason or purpose that is often scary, and we wanted the building to reinforce an optimistic view so those tensions and anxieties could be relieved,” said Tim Tracey, AIA, design principal for SmithGroupJJR, the Chicago-based design architect on the project.

The design and construction team – which also includes Rock Island-based KJWW Engineering, Chicago-based Thornton Tomasetti and New York-headquartered Turner Construction – broke ground on Feb. 12, and it is slated for completion in early 2015.

The 156,000-square-foot facility will connect with the current medical center and will house three major programs: the digestive health program, Angelo P. Creticos Cancer Center and outpatient surgery. It will feature six outpatient operating rooms with video integration capabilities, 18 prep and recovery rooms, two linear accelerators, 16 infusion bays and a teaching area. Hopefully, people will start to take their digestive health more seriously and take the time to look for ways to help improve the condition of their gut and so on. Maybe take a look at these multi gi 5 reviews and see whether they’ll bring the health benefits that you’re after.

The cancer center currently resides at the southwest corner of the medical center. It will be relocated in the Center for Advanced Care and will make up the garden level and north end of the facility’s first floor. The south end of that same floor will house the digestive health clinic, as well as a pre-surgery waiting area, a health resource center, conference facilities and a caf. The third floor will feature an ambulatory surgery suite, which will connect to the existing hospital.

“They are a hospital that’s delivering wonderful care, while limping along with facilities that haven’t supported their growth for some time. This new building offers them an opportunity to really expand some of their core programs. The digestive health program, for example, is going to increase sevenfold,” Tracey said. “This also gives them the opportunity to grow their model over time, which is something they’ve been limited to.” Digestive health is something that the population should take seriously as it affects everyone, this is why using gundry md supplements alongside healthcare support within this new building, will be highly beneficial.

Located in Chicago’s Lakeview community, the building was designed to represent the residential community by incorporating softer elements into the northern edge of the building site, the part closest to the neighborhood. SmithGroupJJR did this by including a community garden to use as a buffer between the massive building and the surrounding residential buildings. They also created a green wall that became a “vertical interpretation of the green park,” Tracey said. “The third thing we did was try to find materials and proportions that were sympathetic to the residential buildings by making it a masonry brick building with punched windows.”

The building is being built with the goal of achieving LEED Silver certification. Apart from the green wall, 50 percent of the roof will incorporate a green roof system – plus, the use of natural light will release the amount of electricity used during the day.

Perhaps the biggest challenge that Tracey faced on designing the project is creating connectivity between the new building and the existing one. “We were able to capture the spirit of the hospital in this building and were able to enhance the value of the existing building, enhance the value of the entire enterprise. To have a building that’s representational of that quality of care is what I’m most proud of,” he said.

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