Best Project Health Care: Boston Medical Center Brockton Behavioral Health Center
The $41-million project was a redevelopment of a former nursing home into an 82-bed behavioral health care facility that treats people with mental illness and substance abuse issues. With the mission of “addressing mental health treatment disparities among disenfranchised populations,” the project was located in a demographically diverse city and designed to be patient-centric, with access to walking paths, an outdoor courtyard, gardens, exercise spaces and sheltered areas.
The fast-track project met an aggressive 19-month schedule, with the dearth of treatment beds in the area making it imperative to finish fast. The team was also able to win over stakeholders who were initially skeptical of the net-zero design and plans for drilling geothermal wells. The team demonstrated that the 88 wells, each 500 ft deep, would cut energy costs and offer a better return on investment than standard mechanical systems. The team says choosing renewable energy sources was also a deliberate investment in the well-being and health of the overall Brockton community as well.