Cottage Grove Community Hospital

Relationships Drive Success of Design-Build Partnership

by Melody Finnemore

A design-build contract ensured that the new $6.5 million Cottage Grove Community Hospital in Oregon was completed by last month.

A design-build partnership helped ensure that Cottage Grove Community Hospital was completed in a short timeframe. Image courtesy of TBG

A site initially selected for the hospital was passed over for the chosen location at 1515 Village Drive in Cottage Grove. Though the second site better suited the hospital's operations, a required conditional-use permit complicated things.

"It was a lengthy process, and it was a challenge dealing with all of the entities involved," said Dave Van Houten, project manager for John Hyland Construction of Eugene, Ore.

The new 40,000-sq.-ft. hospital holds 14 beds and provides space for an emergency department, doctors' offices, radiology services and a lab.

In order to start construction at the end of July 2002 and wrap it up a year later, owner PeaceHealth Medical Group opted for a design-build contract with Hyland Construction as the general contractor and TBG Architects and Planners Inc. of Eugene as the designer.

"The relationship we have with PeaceHealth allowed them to entrust us to meet the budget requirements and provide all of the construction components within the designated timeline," Van Houten said. "We've also had an ongoing relationship with TBG Architects and Planners, so everything just clicked. It was a nice working relationship."

TBG President John Lawless said the positive working relationship extended to the community of Cottage Grove, which played a key role throughout the planning process.

"The thing that was most interesting to me was that it was an opportunity to do a community context-based hospital and medical complex," Lawless added. "The project really reflected the community's values, and we were able to obtain a great deal of input and support from the community following the failure and closure of the former hospital."

The hospital's former owner filed bankruptcy in 1998, and the hospital was purchased and reopened by PeaceHealth that same year.

The design-build process proved to be the best choice for the owner.

"The project scope was well defined at the beginning, PeaceHealth had a clear sense of what it wanted from a quality perspective and the board was interested in having single-point responsibility for the design and construction of the facility," said Jim Werfelmann, executive director of property planning and development for PeaceHealth's Oregon Region.

Heavy timber used in the construction gives the building a natural aesthetic and creates a sense of character that blends well in Cottage Grove, Van Houten said.

"Years ago Cottage Grove was a wood products-based community, so it fits well within the community," he added. "Heavy timber is a construction component that is fairly unique within a hospital."

Though it was difficult to keep the wood dry during the winter so it wouldn't stain, the resulting look creates a facility that is more welcoming to staff, patients and visitors. Two rock fireplaces near the nurses' station and waiting area also add to the new hospital's atmosphere.

"The rock work is really attractive," Van Houten said. "I think it's a trend toward making people feel more comfortable and relieving anxiety when people come to the hospital."

TBG's Lawless said the ability to design a facility with such a positive atmosphere was a rewarding experience.

"The creation of a totally healing environment is really a part of medical care these days," he added. "Scientific evidence essentially shows that the psyche and mental and physical health are influenced by one's surroundings, and it's very nice to put that into practice more often than not."