flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

New El Paso VA healthcare center includes 47 departments, brain and spinal cord injury treatment services

Healthcare Facilities

New El Paso VA healthcare center includes 47 departments, brain and spinal cord injury treatment services

Design-build team includes SmithGroup + HKS Joint Venture


By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor | September 19, 2024
New El Paso VA healthcare center includes 47 departments, brain and spinal cord injury treatment services
Rendering courtesy SmithGroup

A new 492,000-sf Veterans Administration ambulatory care facility on the William Beaumont Army Medical Center campus near El Paso, Texas will include 47 medical departments and provide brain and spinal cord injury treatment services. A design-build team of Clark Construction, SmithGroup, and HKS is spearheading the project that recently broke ground with anticipated completion in 2028.

The project will also include a new central utility plant and significant improvements to utilities, stormwater management, and parking facilities for the Fort Bliss campus. Public outdoor amenities bookend the entry canopy. To the northeast, an 18,000 sf healing garden, partially shaded by the building’s canopy, offers a tranquil space for respite. Toward the northwest, 6,500 sf of outdoor cafe seating connects to the interior canteen. 

A 5,000-sf shaded staff plaza on the facility's south side connects the main staff entry to dedicated staff parking. Inside, a dynamic two-story lobby welcomes patients and their families with retail spaces and patient pharmacy flanking either side of the lobby. Radiology and pathology have dedicated spaces on either end of the first floor.

Interior design is inspired by the passage of the nearby Rio Grande River through the El Paso region. Soft, organic forms and curves at key points in the patient’s journey represent the fluidity of water, embodying the idea of renewal and regeneration on the path to good health. A rich, warm material palette inspired by the colors and textures of the desert and river trails grounds the interior design in the local community.  

New El Paso VA healthcare center includes 47 departments, brain and spinal cord injury treatment services
Rendering courtesy SmithGroup

Indoor public spaces are oriented along the building’s northern façade to offer views of the nearby Franklin Mountains through an expansive glass curtain wall. Reception and waiting areas on each of the four clinical floors (levels 2-5) are also aligned along this northern façade to enjoy daylighting and views of the natural landscape, with staff workspaces and service spaces programmed behind clinical spaces along the southern spine of the building.

Audiology, prosthetics, and rehabilitation for traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries have dedicated space on level two, which also features specialty education rooms and administration spaces. The VA’s signature patient-aligned care team (PACT) clinics are on the third floor, with a specialized women’s clinic and spaces for mental health and substance abuse programs. 

Level four features a dental suite, eye clinic, and surgical care to complement the ambulatory surgery unit and specialty ambulatory care (neurology, cardiovascular) on the fifth floor above. The sixth-floor penthouse features a north-facing outdoor staff terrace, administration space, and mechanical systems. The below-grade basement level of the health center contains back-of-house functions, including loading, laundry, engineering, and pharmacy.  

The new health center is oriented to optimize environmental conservation and protection (solar, thermal, comfort, and wind), contributing to a goal of 30% energy reduction over prevailing building codes. Additionally, the building’s orientation forms a new campus entry and helps to minimize new parking areas on site, leaving a more natural landscape intact. Proposed arrays of photovoltaic panels above new parking areas will help to shade vehicles and generate energy on-site. The building is designed to exceed LEED Silver certification.  

Owner and/or developer: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Design architect: SmithGroup (interior); HKS (exterior)
Architect of record: SmithGroup + HKS Joint Venture 
MEP engineer: Capital Engineering Consultants, Inc. (mechanical); Mazzetti (electrical) 
Structural engineer: Cagley and Associates
General contractor/construction manager: Clark Construction Group

Related Stories

Healthcare Facilities | Oct 9, 2024

How healthcare operations inform design

Amanda Fisher, Communications Specialist, shares how BWBR's personalized approach and specialized experience can make a meaningful impact to healthcare facilities.

Healthcare Facilities | Oct 8, 2024

Herzog & de Meuron completes Switzerland’s largest children’s hospital

The new University Children’s Hospital Zurich features 114 rooftop patient rooms designed like wooden cottages with their own roofs. The project also includes a research and teaching facility.

Hospital Design Trends | Sep 26, 2024

Hospital benchmarking survey shows sharp rise in hospital energy costs

Grumman|Butkus Associates, a firm of energy efficiency consultants and sustainable design engineers, recently released the results of its 2023 Hospital Energy and Water Benchmarking Survey, focusing on healthcare facilities’ resource usage trends and costs for calendar years 2021 and 2022.

Healthcare Facilities | Sep 9, 2024

Exploring the cutting edge of neuroscience facility design

BWBR Communications Specialist Amanda Fisher shares the unique considerations and challenges of designing neuroscience facilities.

Curtain Wall | Aug 15, 2024

7 steps to investigating curtain wall leaks

It is common for significant curtain wall leakage to involve multiple variables. Therefore, a comprehensive multi-faceted investigation is required to determine the origin of leakage, according to building enclosure consultants Richard Aeck and John A. Rudisill with Rimkus. 

Sponsored | Healthcare Facilities | Aug 8, 2024

U.S. healthcare building sector trends and innovations for 2024-2025

As new medicines, treatment regimens, and clinical protocols radically alter the medical world, facilities and building environments in which they take form are similarly evolving rapidly. Innovations and trends related to products, materials, assemblies, and building systems for the U.S. healthcare building sector have opened new avenues for better care delivery. Discussions with leading healthcare architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) firms and owners-operators offer insights into some of the most promising directions. This course is worth 1.0 AIA/HSW learning unit.

Products and Materials | Jul 31, 2024

Top building products for July 2024

BD+C Editors break down July's top 15 building products, from Façades by Design to Schweiss Doors's Strap Latch bifold door.

Smart Buildings | Jul 25, 2024

A Swiss startup devises an intelligent photovoltaic façade that tracks and moves with the sun

Zurich Soft Robotics says Solskin can reduce building energy consumption by up to 80% while producing up to 40% more electricity than comparable façade systems.

Great Solutions | Jul 23, 2024

41 Great Solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors

AI ChatBots, ambient computing, floating MRIs, low-carbon cement, sunshine on demand, next-generation top-down construction. These and 35 other innovations make up our 2024 Great Solutions Report, which highlights fresh ideas and innovations from leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms.

Healthcare Facilities | Jul 22, 2024

5 healthcare building sector trends for 2024-2025

Interactive patient care systems and trauma-informed design are among two emerging trends in the U.S. healthcare building sector, according to BD+C's 2024 Healthcare Annual Report (free download; short registration required). 

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021