A redesign of the Mayo Clinic’s downtown campus in Rochester, Minn., centers around two new clinical high-rise buildings. The two nine-story structures will reach a height of 221 feet, with the potential to expand to 420 feet. Part of a multiyear strategic initiative, the two towers feature a skybridge that horizontally links them with the existing Gonda Building, allowing staff to traverse the site efficiently.
The skybridge is an integral part of a double-height social amenity level that will provide patients and loved ones with space to rest, connect, and recharge. This level will be clearly visible on the building’s façade, making it easy to locate from any part of the campus.
The design creates a new central point of arrival, with the north and south drop-offs converging at a unified main entrance. The existing Gonda Lobby will extend into the new facilities, simplifying wayfinding and creating a welcoming environment from the moment of arrival.
The design creates adjacencies in dynamic care “neighborhoods” that will streamline the patient experience. These community-centered neighborhoods will fuse services around patient needs and specific diseases, creating continuous care environments that will serve as patients’ homes while at the clinic.
Double-height winter gardens will be located at the center of care neighborhoods, uniting them, and providing light-filled spaces with spectacular views of the city. The atriums are both social and functional, providing opportunities for new forms of respite and healing or collaboration and care.
A universal grid along with generous floor-to-floor heights will allow clinical spaces to change over time and respond as healthcare continues to evolve. Care environments will be served behind the scenes by highly flexible technological infrastructure containing mechanical, data, and robotic delivery systems that support pioneering treatments while allowing prioritization of human connections.
Seamless integration of digital capabilities blurs traditional distinctions between inpatient, outpatient, and virtual care to support patients throughout their healthcare journey.
“This is a revolutionary moment for medical care and a complete rethinking of the traditional hospital building as we know it offering maximum flexibility for future needs, while ensuring that the interest of the patient remains at the heart of their healthcare,” says Norman Foster, founder and executive chairman, Foster + Partners. “Our design centers on natural light, views and connections with nature to facilitate new breakthroughs and help deliver the highest level of care with warmth and compassion.”
On the project team:
Owner: Mayo Clinic
Architects: Foster + Partners; CannonDesign
Engineers: CannonDesign is Engineer of Record. Burns and McDonnell is engineer of record for central plant upgrades, site electrical, and thermal utilities.
General Contractor: Gilbane Building Company
![Rendering: Dbox/Foster + Partners © 2023, courtesy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research](/sites/default/files/inline-images/3128_FP878970.jpg)
![Rendering: Dbox/Foster + Partners © 2023, courtesy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research](/sites/default/files/inline-images/3128_FP878972.jpg)
![Rendering: Dbox/Foster + Partners © 2023, courtesy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research](/sites/default/files/inline-images/3128_FP878975.jpg)
![Rendering: Dbox/Foster + Partners © 2023, courtesy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research](/sites/default/files/inline-images/3128_FP878976.jpg)
![Rendering: Dbox/Foster + Partners © 2023, courtesy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Rendering%20-%20Aerial.jpg)
![Rendering: Dbox/Foster + Partners © 2023, courtesy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Rendering%20-%20Winter%20View.jpg)
Related Stories
University Buildings | Feb 23, 2023
Johns Hopkins shares design for new medical campus building named in honor of Henrietta Lacks
In November, Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Medicine shared the initial design plans for a campus building project named in honor of Henrietta Lacks, the Baltimore County woman whose cells have advanced medicine around the world. Diagnosed with cervical cancer, Lacks, an African-American mother of five, sought treatment at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in the early 1950s. Named HeLa cells, the cell line that began with Lacks has contributed to numerous medical breakthroughs.
Healthcare Facilities | Feb 21, 2023
Cleveland's Glick Center hospital anchors neighborhood revitalization
The newly opened MetroHealth Glick Center in Cleveland, a replacement acute care hospital for MetroHealth, is the centerpiece of a neighborhood revitalization. The eleven-story structure is located within a ‘hospital-in-a-park’ setting that will provide a bucolic space to the community where public green space is lacking. It will connect patients, visitors, and staff to the emotional and physical benefits of nature.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 16, 2023
Coastal Construction Group establishes an attainable multifamily housing division
Coastal Construction Group, one of the largest privately held construction companies in the Southeast, has announced a new division within their multifamily sector that will focus on the need for attainable housing in South Florida.
Intelligent Lighting | Feb 13, 2023
Exploring intelligent lighting usage in healthcare, commercial facilities
SSR's Todd Herrmann, PE, LEEP AP, explains intelligent lighting's potential use cases in healthcare facilities and more.
Giants 400 | Feb 9, 2023
New Giants 400 download: Get the complete at-a-glance 2022 Giants 400 rankings in Excel
See how your architecture, engineering, or construction firm stacks up against the nation's AEC Giants. For more than 45 years, the editors of Building Design+Construction have surveyed the largest AEC firms in the U.S./Canada to create the annual Giants 400 report. This year, a record 519 firms participated in the Giants 400 report. The final report includes 137 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Giants 400 | Feb 6, 2023
2022 Reconstruction Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. building reconstruction and renovation sector
Gensler, Stantec, IPS, Alfa Tech, STO Building Group, and Turner Construction top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest reconstruction sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Healthcare Facilities | Jan 31, 2023
How to solve humidity issues in hospitals and healthcare facilities
Humidity control is one of the top mechanical issues healthcare clients face. SSR's Lee Nordholm, PE, LEED AP, offers tips for handling humidity issues in hospitals and healthcare facilities.
Augmented Reality | Jan 27, 2023
Enhancing our M.O.O.D. through augmented reality therapy rooms
Perkins Eastman’s M.O.O.D. Space aims to make mental healthcare more accessible—and mental health more achievable.
Hospital Design Trends | Jan 19, 2023
Maximizing access for everyone: A closer look at universal design in healthcare facilities
Maria Sanchez, Interior Designer at Gresham Smith, shares how universal design bolsters empathy and equity in healthcare facilities.
Fire and Life Safety | Jan 9, 2023
Why lithium-ion batteries pose fire safety concerns for buildings
Lithium-ion batteries have become the dominant technology in phones, laptops, scooters, electric bikes, electric vehicles, and large-scale battery energy storage facilities. Here’s what you need to know about the fire safety concerns they pose for building owners and occupants.