On October 15, a joint venture comprised of the general contractors Clark Construction and JR Abbott Construction ceremonially broke ground for the new Behavioral Health Teaching Facility at the University of Washington’s Medical Center-Northwest campus in Seattle.
The six-story 184,000-sf facility, designed by SRG Partnership, is scheduled to open to residents in December 2023, according to the Seattle Times. Funded through $234 million in state appropriation, the facility is being built adjacent to the campus’s main hospital wing.
According to the University, the new building will have a 150-bed capacity, with 75 long-term civil commitment beds, 25 geropsychiatric beds, and 50 licensed med-surgery beds with the capacity to treat patients with psychiatric diagnoses and/or substance use disorders. Its top three floors will feature highly flexible inpatient units designed to respond to client needs from highly structured programs to programs that promote independent functioning and a transition to the community.
TELEPSYCHIATRY SERVICES A KEY COMPONENT
The project team and the University are calling this building one of a kind, in that it will provide a fully integrated and welcoming healing environment for patients struggling with physical and behavioral health problems. The building will include a procedural area for electroconvulsive therapy, and neuromodulation where patients can be treated with brain simulation therapy.
Also see: California University of Science and Medicine’s new School of Medicine
Brett Earnest, Clark’s Senior Vice President, says his firm has been working with the university for nearly two years to develop the facility, which when completed will serve as the home for the statewide 24/7 telepsychiatry consultation program and an interdisciplinary training and workforce development program focused on preparing and supporting the next generation of behavioral health providers for Washington State.
The Building Team is working under an Integrated Project Delivery contract. Its members include KPFF Consulting Engineers, Thornton Tomasetti, Ricca Design Studios, OJB Landscape Architecture, Mazzetti, PAE Engineers, McKinstry, VECA Electric, Schuff Steel, Performance Contracting Inc., and Queen City.
RECONNECTING MIND AND BODY
The Seattle Times reports that patients will have access to terraces and decks, sleep in secured private bedrooms, and meet with physicians and other staff in spacious treatment areas. Terracotta tiles will flank the building’s outer structure. Common spaces will feature calming muted colors. Outdoor benches will be crafted from reclaimed trees. The first floor of the building will house a public dining hall for staff and visitors.
Carl Hampson, SRG’s Design Principal, told the newspaper that choices for materials and fixtures were prioritized based on patient safety criteria. The building’s design, created in collaboration with our clinical stakeholders, will promote healing and well-being, “reinforcing the connection between mind and body,” Hampson said.
Related Stories
Giants 400 | Oct 6, 2022
Top 90 Healthcare Sector Engineering + EA Firms for 2022
Jacobs, AECOM, WSP, and IMEG Corp. head the ranking of the nation's largest healthcare sector engineering and engineering/architecture (EA) firms for 2022, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking factors all healthcare sector work, including hospitals, outpatient facilities, and medical office buildings.
Giants 400 | Oct 6, 2022
Top 170 Healthcare Sector Architecture + AE Firms for 2022
HDR, CannonDesign, HKS, and Stantec top the ranking of the nation's largest healthcare sector architecture and architecture/engineering (AE) firms for 2022, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking factors all healthcare sector work, including hospitals, outpatient facilities, and medical office buildings.
Architects | Sep 12, 2022
FWA Group joins national architecture, interior design, and planning firm Hord Coplan Macht
Hord Coplan Macht acquires FWA Group.
| Sep 8, 2022
The Twin Cities’ LGBTQ health clinic moves into a new and improved facility
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.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2022
Top 90 Construction Management Firms for 2022
CBRE, Alfa Tech, Jacobs, and Hill International head the rankings of the nation's largest construction management (as agent) and program/project management firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2022
Top 200 Contractors for 2022
Turner Construction, STO Building Group, Whiting-Turner, and DPR Construction top the ranking of the nation's largest general contractors, CM at risk firms, and design-builders for nonresidential buildings and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2022
Top 45 Engineering Architecture Firms for 2022
Jacobs, AECOM, WSP, and Burns & McDonnell top the rankings of the nation's largest engineering architecture (EA) firms for nonresidential buildings and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 22, 2022
Top 80 Engineering Firms for 2022
Kimley-Horn, Tetra Tech, Langan, and NV5 head the rankings of the nation's largest engineering firms for nonresidential buildings and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 21, 2022
Top 110 Architecture/Engineering Firms for 2022
Stantec, HDR, HOK, and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill top the rankings of the nation's largest architecture engineering (AE) firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Aug 20, 2022
Top 180 Architecture Firms for 2022
Gensler, Perkins and Will, HKS, and Perkins Eastman top the rankings of the nation's largest architecture firms for nonresidential and multifamily buildings work, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.