Providence Seaside Hospital

The existing site uses a single entrance to accommodate all vehicular traffic - emergency, service, and public. To reach the emergency department, ambulances must drive through the entire lot to reach the drop-off. The site is also covered in numerous old-growth trees, making extensive demolition neither cost-effective nor sustainable. It also worth noting that to users, the foliage is a mere backdrop rather than an engaged player.

The new site rectifies these issues, looks at existing utilization, and seeks a more harmonious relationship with nature. The north entrance serves emergency and service vehicles exclusively, with strategically placed drop-off zones for both kinds. Public vehicles enter through the south, with drop-offs serving the existing hospital, surgery center, and clinic building. Existing lots are optimized and new ones are placed atop the baseball diamonds.

Pedestrians can move quickly and organically across the site. Planting areas allow for beautification and bioswales, further mitigating the potential hazards of a tsunami. Such zones are placed between pathways and roads, reducing dangerous interactions between people and cars. Finally, the site retains old growth trees, allowing the existing condition to be clearly visible to people on the ground, on the skydeck, and within the facility.

To mimize deforestation, new services are placed within two square volumes. The east volume annexes the existing hospital, providing direct transfer from the new surgery suites to existing emergency facilities. The west volume serves as the public face of the project, clearly visible from the road, and offers quickly accessible services, such as the pharmacy. The skydeck connects nodes across the site, terminating at the rowhouse.

The ground treatment gives way to the skydeck above. The space offers users public amenities, communities, elevated views, and refuge in the the event of a natural disaster. Curvilinear geometry mirrors that of Neawanna Creek nearby and juxtaposes the more structured volumes. A combination of shade and circular penetrations provide a controlled and dynamic atmosphere on the ground.

Regenerative Features

Program modules are organized by their relationship to public and medical functions. For example, family and pediatric clincis rarely deal with acute medical issues; thus, they lie closer to the road and new parking lot in the west building. Conversely, surgical suites, with the need to quickly move a gurney through back-of-house to the emergency center in the event of a crash-out, remain in the east building, adjacent to the existing hospital. The helipad also sits on this building, directly above its location on the current site. Programs were also considered for their relevance in the event of a tsunami. For instance, the architecture prioritizes imaging functions over physical therapy if flooding were to eliminate the medical capabilities of the first floor.

Physical Therapy Center and Lobby

The modular curtain wall system dresses the facade. Concrete panels, channel glass, glazed mesh, and clear glazing vary in porosity, providing adequate sun protection and translating a spectrum of private to public into the physical appearance of the hospital.