For more than 50 years, Family Tree Clinic has provided reproductive and sexual health services to underserved populations—from part of an old schoolhouse, until recently. Designed by Perkins&Will, the new Family Tree Clinic, which serves the LGBTQ community in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area, now can serve an additional 10,000 patients a year.
In addition to providing reproductive and sexual health services to the uninsured and under-insured, Family Tree Clinic offers comprehensive outreach education services statewide, focusing on health and sex education in schools, community settings, colleges, and correctional facilities. The organization also offers health education for the deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing.
Of the clinic’s clients, 55 percent are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), 60 percent are LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer/questioning), and 70 percent live below the poverty line. These individuals had faced long waiting lists and barriers to medical care.
In 2017, Family Tree launched a plan for a new and improved facility. The building serves two main purposes: a welcoming oasis for patients, staff, and community members, and a safe, private, trauma-informed place of respite. On the first floor, the community and staff spaces are surrounded by glass, welcoming visitors inside. A protected courtyard provides outdoor respite for staff and community as well as daylight for the interior public spaces. Meanwhile, the clinic is located on the second floor toward the back of the building, ensuring privacy.
The structure’s simple brick volume matches the neighborhood’s scale and material pattern. The design team carefully chose materials that indicated permanence in the community. BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists from the community covered the building with murals that express the power of healing.
On the Building Team:
Owner: Family Tree Clinic
Owner’s representative: Grand Real Estate Advisors
Design architect: Perkins&Will
Architect of record: Perkins&Will
MEP engineer: Victus Engineering
Structural engineer: BKBM Engineers
General contractor/construction manager: Greiner Construction
![Family Tree Clinic ext 2](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Family%20Tree%20Clinic%20ext%202.jpg)
![Family Tree int](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Family%20Tree%20int.jpg)
![Family Tree int 2](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Family%20Tree%20int%202.jpg)
![Courtesy Perkins&Will](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Family%20Tree%20ext%203.jpg)
Related Stories
Market Data | Feb 10, 2016
Nonresidential building starts and spending should see solid gains in 2016: Gilbane report
But finding skilled workers continues to be a problem and could inflate a project's costs.
Game Changers | Feb 5, 2016
Mayo Clinic's breakthrough research lab puts evidence-based design to the test
Mayo teams up with Delos to bring hard science to EBD research.
Game Changers | Feb 4, 2016
GAME CHANGERS: 6 projects that rewrite the rules of commercial design and construction
BD+C’s inaugural Game Changers report highlights today’s pacesetting projects, from a prefab high-rise in China to a breakthrough research lab in the Midwest.
Healthcare Facilities | Jan 27, 2016
CBRE: Here's what healthcare owners need to know when selecting a real estate developer
Understanding equity sources, balancing costs, and involving legal departments early in the process can help health systems maintain leverage during the RFP process, writes CBRE Healthcare’s Chris Bodnar.
Healthcare Facilities | Jan 27, 2016
South Carolina governor’s push to repeal health facility construction rules gets boost from Feds
Legislature may move to strike certificate of need requirements.
Metals | Jan 19, 2016
6 ways to use metal screens and mesh for best effect
From airy façades to wire mesh ceilings to screening walls, these projects show off the design possibilities with metal.
Great Solutions | Jan 19, 2016
Healing garden doubles as therapy trails
A Boston-area hospital takes the healing garden to the next level.
Healthcare Facilities | Jan 15, 2016
Mount Sinai Health System signs first healthcare IPD IFOA contract in New York City
Francis Cauffman, Syska Hennessy, Turner Construction are the primary parties in agreement.
| Jan 14, 2016
How to succeed with EIFS: exterior insulation and finish systems
This AIA CES Discovery course discusses the six elements of an EIFS wall assembly; common EIFS failures and how to prevent them; and EIFS and sustainability.
Great Solutions | Jan 6, 2016
Shepley Bulfinch develops elegant design solution to address behavioral issues in emergency departments
ED scheme allows staff to isolate unruly patients and visitors in a secure area.