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
| Oct 2, 2012
Bernards working on project at L.A. White Memorial Medical Center
The new facility is a $15-million, 41,000-sf concrete structure which includes three stories of medical office space atop a three-level parking garage.
| Sep 28, 2012
Seattle is home to first LEED-certified modular radiation center
By using modular construction and strategic site design, RAD Medical Systems built the first radiation center to receive LEED certification.
| Sep 20, 2012
Forrester begins construction of freestanding cancer center in Montgomery County, Md.
The new 51,000-square-foot building will include two linear accelerator vaults for radiation equipment.
| Sep 7, 2012
Healthcare architects get a preview of tomorrow’s medical landscape
The topic on everyone’s mind was how the Affordable Care Act would impact healthcare design and construction––and whether the law would even make it past the coming election cycle.
| Sep 7, 2012
Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital breaks ground on expansion
Sustainability and nature at the heart of the new addition at the Stanford University Medical Center designed by Perkins+Will.
| Sep 6, 2012
CPPI awarded $30.3 million contract for University of Florida’s Harrell Medical Education Building
The specialized interdisciplinary learning environment will serve as a focal point for integration and program development for all primary care educational activities in the College of Medicine.
| Aug 29, 2012
BOND completes South Cove Community Health Center
$11 million, 21,000 square foot community health center opens in Quincy, Mass.
| Aug 24, 2012
KLMK Group forms strategic alliance with Taylor Construction Management
KLMK's expertise in the capital delivery process and TCM's global platform combine to provide an integrated solution with an unparalleled impact for health care related industries.
| Aug 24, 2012
Study predicts how health economic, delivery and buildings play a role in the next decade
Study also finds accountable care organizations, pay-for-performance and aging population will have greatest impact over next five years.
| Aug 9, 2012
DSGW Architects welcomes new employees
Three new employees located in DSGW's Duluth office.