Located on a remediated brownfield parcel in the Charlestown Navy Yard, the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital expands the offerings of the current 42-year-old hospital at Nashua Street and features 132 private patient rooms, large common areas, and a thoughtful design that promotes wellness for people with disabilities.
Seventy five per cent of the hospital’s first floor space has been dedicated for public use and integrated with the Boston HarborWalk. Taking full advantage of waterfront views of the Boston skyline, the landscape design incorporates reclaimed timbers throughout the site.
A trail running along the waterfront features therapeutic equipment and offers patients the opportunity to encourage the healing process by performing physical therapy on a variety of different landscaped surfaces.
Paying importance to the site’s naval yard history, the hospital features a façade with gray materials, which are reminiscent of the military battleships and aircraft carriers berthed at the Yard for much of the 20th century.
The building is visually reduced by featuring two connected sections, an eight-storey patient tower, and a three-storey therapeutic gymnasium and pool. Designed with no back sides, the building can be viewed from all sides.
In order to create visual interest and reveal a slightly different building from each angle, each section of the divided structure utilises a variety of materials. Glass curtain wall is generously integrated into the design, which creates transparency and an abundance of natural light throughout the interior.
Incorporating inclusive design into every aspect of the facility, the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital features entry at street level. The reception desk is low and rounded while the patient rooms have custom cabinetry and automated shades, patient lifts, private bathrooms, and amenities such as private refrigerators with sleeping accommodations for family members and a wireless connection for patients and guests.
The building program includes outpatient services, a pool for aquatherapy, two large gymnasiums, activities-of-daily-living suite, transitional patient apartment, and satellite gyms embedded on two inpatient floors.
In response to climate change and probable rising sea levels, the main floor was raised one foot and all of the HVAC equipment is located on the roof. Gymnasiums, multi-purpose rooms, and educational rooms utilise automatic operable windows for natural ventilation.
The operable windows allow the building to remain operational even if mechanical systems are interrupted. Vegetated roofs mitigate storm water runoff and reduce cooling loads and heat-island effect. Therapeutic terraces on the third and fourth floors serve as places of respite for patients, staff and families. Gardens and views of Boston Harbor provide further uplifting diversions to the occupants.
The project has achieved LEED Gold certification.
