Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest awarded Clark/McCarthy of Costa Mesa a design-build $394-million Recovery Act funded contract for a new hospital at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. Navy Medicine West is the sponsor for the hospital representing the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery.

NAVFAC Southwest will manage the largest American Recovery and Reinvestment Act project of 2009 to be awarded in the Department of Navy.

�The naval hospital replacement project at Camp Pendleton is one of the largest Recovery Act projects within the Department of Defense and plays a critical role for the support and care for the local military families in the Camp Pendleton area," said Cmdr. Whit Robinson, NAVFAC Southwest's resident officer-in-charge of construction for Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton.

Clark/McCarthy, a joint venture, will design and construct the new 500,000-sq-ft, multilevel medical hospital on a 70 acre site at Camp Pendleton. The lead architect on the project is HKS.

The new hospital will include a central utilities plant, a 1,500-space multilevel parking structure, surface parking, site development and associated supporting facilities such as inpatient medical facilities, ancillary departments, emergency care, primary care, specialty care clinics, support spaces and facilities for non-ambulatory patients with stays in excess of 24 hours.

�I speak for both Clark and McCarthy in stating how pleased we are with NAVFAC's trust and confidence in selecting our team for this very significant contract award,� says Richard M. Heim, a joint-venture managing partner from Clark/McCarthy. �We pledge the utmost from both firms in making this much needed hospital a valued success for NAVFAC, a strong boost to the construction community and the best facility for our men and women in the Navy and Marine Corps.�

The project will have facilities to provide a variety of medical services for surgery, patient overnight stays, dental care, intensive care and general medical and emergency care.

�Navy Medicine West strives to provide the safest environment for both patients and staff in California's earthquake-prone region,� says Ch� Miranda, Navy Medicine West's deputy chief of staff for installations and logistics. �California�s seismic-safety legislation, Senate Bill 1953, was passed in 1994 following the Northridge earthquake. The Northridge earthquake caused 23 hospitals to suspend some or all of their services and resulted in more than $3 billion in hospital-related damages. Although state standards do not directly apply to federal hospitals, Navy medicine leaders recognizing this vulnerability to one of the largest concentrations of U.S. Marine Corps forces in the world, and identified this project as a top priority for military medical construction.�

The contract also contains two planned modifications and one option. One modification will purchase conservation banking credits. Conservation banking credits are approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that bank owners sell to developers or project proponents who need to compensate for the impacts their projects have on threatened or endangered species, wetlands, environmentally sensitive habitat areas, mudflats, sub-tidal areas and less sensitive resources.

The second modification is to obtain furniture, fixtures and equipment necessary to support the facility's function. The option is for building additional parking. The use of the modifications and option will increase the value of the contract to $451 million.

�In full swing, it is estimated that this project may employ between 700 and 1,000 construction workers daily, thus providing a large economic stimulus for the area,� says Robinson.

The project is scheduled for completion in 2014.

Since April 2009, NAVFAC Southwest has awarded 107 Recovery Act projects for more than $814 million including the Camp Pendleton hospital project.

Last week, NAVFAC Southwest awarded T.B. Penick & Sons Inc. of San Diego a $15.4 million Recovery Act funded task order to design and construct bachelor quarters at San Clemente Island.