Construction Update At The New Children’s Hospital

from Practice Update, Fall 2006

By Ron Berge, Vice President, Facilities Development

On June 10, 2004, we celebrated the groundbreaking of The new Children’s Hospital. 

In April 2005, we celebrated with a “Topping Out” ceremony, placing the final beam on the exterior of the building. 

Now, more than two years later, bright colors and natural light are streaming into the once steel and concrete colorless walls.

Internal Progress

Recently, the framework for the skylight on the roof of the Administrative Office Building was set and sheathed in preparation for the brick exterior that is underway.

The most notable construction update on the interior of the main hospital is the completion of the atrium ceiling and atrium skylights.  These skylights, embedded in the beautifully curved ceiling, will stream light from the roof of the atrium down into the spacious four-story space, creating ever-changing natural lighting patterns as the sun traces its path across the sky. The framing continues on the east wall of the atrium. Once framing is complete, the scaffolding, which now fills the atrium, will come down.

Interior room finishes including flooring, headwalls and casework are complete on many floors, including the main Operating Rooms, OR peri-operative areas, PACU, PICU, NICU and the 6th floor.

The east courtyard, serving families and visitors in the critical care units, is nearly finished with the installation of floor pavers.

External Progress

The most prominent sign of external progress at the new hospital is the erection of the foundation walls and steel reinforced columns for the visitor garage on the south side of the main hospital. In addition, the granite stone exterior around the main entry of the hospital is completed.