A groundbreaking new Building for Yale New Haven Hospitalby Laura Zimmer | 09.12.2011

New Haven Hospital

New Haven in Connecticut does not only have Yale as a well-known elite university, but also a unique hospital. For the lab building of the research and teaching hospital, Behnisch architects had something very special in mind in cooperation with the architectural bureau Svigals + Partner, adding some color to the hospital’s daily grind. 

Since its completion in 2010, the nearly 14,000 m² new Park Street building connects the two already existing campus buildings with each other and dominates the inviting main entrance to the adjacent Cancer Center. The lab medical’s new building opens up new work space across five floors. The expansion of the clinical research also covers, apart from in-house lab examinations, queries from other regional hospitals. A green atrium, distributed across six floors, along with a cafeteria and a conservatory, invites to stay for a while and creates a pleasant, inviting place. The interior also contributes to this: warmth, colors, the deployment of timber floors and plants are a nice contrast to the hospital’s sterile atmosphere. 

Modern Hospital Architecture

The Air Rights three-story parking garage next to the building has been integrated in the open space planning, a glass bridge allows for direct access to the hospital. A special value of its own is created by the colorful glass façade standing out from the surrounding buildings and thus creating a unique recognition value. Consisting of individual glass screens distinguishing themselves from each other through different colors, a unique design has been evolved, often compared with Rubik’s Cube or a kaleidoskope. The façade consists of light scattering insulation glass, resulting in a perfect distribution of daylight inside the room. The deployment of capillary glass makes for an attractive appearance and adds the benefit of an optimal and energy saving heat insulation. At night the Park Street building’s vivid glass façade illuminates nearly the whole campus.
Surprised by the colorful design, the ones in charge at Yale New Haven still were convinced. “We wanted to create something colorful, playful, loosening up space and setting a highlight,” says Christof Jantzen, partner at Behnisch architects. The original plans for expanding Route 34 and its building freeze at the beginning of the 70s left a large gap within the townscape. Now, this empty space has been filled by the recently completed Park Street building and points the way for health supporting hospital architecture.