On a narrow street lined with excited community members snapping photos and craning their heads for a glimpse of the stage, Chinese Hospital in San Francisco, California, recently unveiled its new patient tower with a grand opening and ribbon cutting celebration.
The day’s festivities included a traditional Buddhist blessing, a Catholic blessing, lion dancing, a performance by Beach Blanket Babylon and public building tours led by DPR team members, subcontractors and Chinese Hospital volunteers. The ceremonies were fueled by excitement from the community, many of whom gathered in their nearby shop windows or even traveled to San Francisco from other parts of the country specifically to witness the historic grand opening.
The last remaining independent institution of its kind in San Francisco, Chinese Hospital was built by the community and for the community. The most densely populated area west of Manhattan, San Francisco’s Chinatown provided a vibrant, bustling and logistically challenging setting for the DPR team since the project broke ground in 2012. Delivery timelines were scheduled around food trucks and neighborhood vendors, operating merely feet away from the new structure.
Along with sweeping views of the bay, from Coit Tower to the Transamerica Pyramid, the new patient tower features:
- 100,000 square feet over eight floors
- Expanded emergency treatment center
- Expanded cardiopulmonary unit & diagnostic imaging department
- 4 additional operating rooms
- 44 private acute care patient rooms
- 6 intensive care unit beds
- Skilled nursing unit with 23 beds
- MRI unit
- Expanded pharmacy
Demolished to make way for the new seismically sound acute care facility, the original Chinese Hospital building opened its doors in 1925 and was the birthplace of martial artist and film star Bruce Lee. With the new patient tower, Chinese Hospital is positioned to continue to thrive – both supporting and supported by – the community it has always served.
MEI Architects served as architect on the project.
Source: http://www.dpr.com.
Renderings courtesy of Chinese Hospital.
