MISSION HILLS, Calif. — Providence Holy Cross Medical Center has received The Alliance for Quality Construction’s “Q Award” for construction of its 138-bed patient care South Wing. The new South Wing was constructed as the medical center celebrated its 50th year. The project was union built by McCarthy Building Companies and Swinerton Builders, and designed by HMC Architects.
The new 132,000-square-foot expansion is one of the first LEED-certified hospital buildings in the state and the only one in California to receive Silver rating. Environmentally friendly features include eco-friendly construction materials, water bottle filling stations, additional bicycle racks and an extension of the hospital’s first-of-its-kind composting program.
“The Silver LEED certified project is a testament to the commitment of continuing green technologies training and education by our union contractors and their craftsmen,” said AQC’s Chair Pam Ackrich. LEED is the nationally accepted benchmark for environmentally conscious green design.
Plans for the new four-story South Wing began nearly a decade ago as Providence Holy Cross and other area hospitals felt the ripple effects of numerous hospital closures. With the loss of some 400 beds valley wide, the Catholic, not-for-profit hospital initiated a fundraising campaign to help finance the expansion, and businesses, residents, physicians, employees and volunteers have helped raise more than $5 million toward the $160 million project.
The state of the art facility includes the first 12-bed neo-natal intensive care unit serving north San Fernando/Santa Clarita Valleys; a new Women’s Pavilion, including additional Labor & Delivery rooms, Post Partum rooms and C-Section suites, and expanded gastroenterology lab, a staff lactation lounge, and a chapel. The South Wing was built in accordance to California’s most recent seismic safety guidelines, and is expected to not only withstand an 8.0 magnitude earthquake, but to remain operational to continue to treat existing patients as well as the injured.
“Providence Holy Cross is nearly always at capacity and this new patient care wing gives us the room we need to expand services to our patients and their families,” said Larry Bowe, chief executive officer. “At 377 beds, we’ve become one of the largest hospitals in the Greater Valley Area.” Another benefit of the hospital’s expansion is the creation of 370 new jobs.
According to Thomas C. Bethmann Project Development at Swinerton Builders-OC/IE, the construction of the new South Wing included many interesting facts. Over 1 million man-hours were spent on the project. The original plans called for a LEED Certified building, but became a LEED-Silver Certified structure.
This certification included; low mercury fluorescent lamps, an installed drip irrigation system, implementation of a water bottle reuse program (drinking fountains also had a water bottle filling station), utilization of low emission finishes; paints/coatings, carpet, composite wood, and adhesive sealants, and over 80 percent of construction waste was recycled. In addition, 10 percent of construction materials were recycled materials and 50 percent of new wood materials were FSC certified.
AQC’s “Q Award” is given annually for outstanding contributions toward the attainment of quality construction within the building industry of southern California. The winner is selected by the Alliance’s membership from quality union construction projects completed in the previous year.
