James Brasuell reports on the results of a competition sponsored by healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente aiming to transform healthcare design in California by breaking from traditionally sterile and isolating hospital environments.
Kaiser Permanente, which has been at the forefront of healthcare innovation since its founding in the 1930s and 40s, recently announced San Bruno, California–based Aditazz and Portland-based Mazzetti Nash Lipsey Burch (M+NLB), with the New York office of Perkins+Will (P+W) as the winners of its "Small Hospital, Big Idea" competition.
Intended to re-imagine the role and design of 60- to 120-bed hospitals in small communities, "The winners' designs united hospitals with their communities and encouraged healthy activity. M+NLB/P+W's concept envisioned a hospital that transitions from a "sick care" to a "total health" environment, with outdoor plazas and public spaces. The team's wellness pavilion is a highly glazed public concourse located above a rehabilitated desert landscape, creating a "beacon" of healthy civic and community behavior," explains Brasuell.
FULL STORY: Game Changer
Review: New Oakland Hospital a Case Study in Urban Design Failure
John King describes a new, 7.6-acre hospital campus in the heart of Oakland, California as accessible only by car or ambulance—in other words, "enough to make you sick."
California Ballot Measures Would Aid the Mentally Ill and Drug-Addicted Homeless
Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed in March a two-part ballot initiative to tackle homelessness, focusing on mental illness and substance abuse, which would provide 10,000 beds in new, voluntary treatment facilities—but one funding source is controversial.
Omicron Breaks Another Pandemic Record: Hospitalizations
The highly infectious Omicron variant is contributing to a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the U.S. The record set in last winter's surge fell on Tuesday as hospitals suffer from massive labor shortages caused by the variant.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
In California Battle of Housing vs. Environment, Housing Just Won
A new state law significantly limits the power of CEQA, an environmental review law that served as a powerful tool for blocking new development.
Boulder Eliminates Parking Minimums Citywide
Officials estimate the cost of building a single underground parking space at up to $100,000.
Orange County, Florida Adopts Largest US “Sprawl Repair” Code
The ‘Orange Code’ seeks to rectify decades of sprawl-inducing, car-oriented development.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont