design studio
design studio
HG’s foundation is in creative problem solvers that employ a collaborative crossdiscipline approach to ensure strong solutions for our clients. In our decades of design in Virginia, we have amassed a vast portfolio of work in all sectors, including healthcare, academic projects, residential, municipal, and private and public development.
David C. Gerstenmaier, President / Director of Design
For over 30 years, Dave has accumulated an extensive and award-winning portfolio in landscape architectural design and land planning in Virginia. His experience with memory care and gardens is personal and extensive, and has led to incorporating external connections with the senses. Attention to what matters to mature residents and improving quality of life via outdoor access is important in his designs; therefore, attention is given to recognizable plant material evoking familiar scents and colors, as well as attracting birds, butterflies and other fauna to provide solace. Ease of access and resting areas are also factored into garden spaces, since nature, breezes and sunlight have long been considered an anecdote to anxiety or depression that can inevitably be a part of the senior care experience. Dave is practically aware of creating wheelchair accessible pathways and shade trees that encourage quiet reflection without over-stimulating.
Through Dave's creative land planning, and design of the courtyards and grounds at Bon Secours St. Francis Medical Center, the campus was designated "America's Most Beautiful Hospital" in 2011.
St. Francis Medical Center | Bon Secours Health System St. Francis Medical Center is a 45-acre medical campus that comprises a 130-bed acute care hospital, an attached six-story medical office building and two freestanding medical office buildings. In lieu of a sea of asphalt as the first thing greeting hospital guests, the team at HG created a site plan that features a tree-lined boulevard with pedestrian-scale lighting, and a series of smaller parking lots on either side, making the walk from the car the first in a series of soothing, calming measures designed to welcome guests. At the entry, a large central fountain and vine-covered pergolas soften the face of the hospital building. At the back of the hospital a sunken chapel garden is one of the signature features of the hospital. Nestled between the retaining wall for the parking lot 16 feet above, and the hospital building, this long, narrow, potentially-challenging space presented HG with an opportunity to create something spectacular. Long pergolas line either side of the garden, and a cast stone gazebo at one end not only creates a lovely focal point, but completes the garden which has become a popular site for weddings. We designed a reflecting pool and granite runnel water feature to add the soothing sights and sounds of running water, and our plant palette of mixed evergreens, deciduous shrubs and herbaceous perennials provides year-round interest. Both the front entry and the chapel garden contributed to the Medical Center being named America’s Most Beautiful Hospital by Soliant Health in 2011. In making this distinction, organizers cited the landscaping that “welcomes patients and visitors to relax and regenerate.�
LOCATION Richmond, VA
St. Mary’s Guest House | Bon Secours Health System
CLIENT Bon Secours Health System
The Evelyn D. Reinhart Guest House was designed to be a home away from home for families of patients at St. Mary’s Hospital, serving as respite for up to 16 families.
ARCHITECT Odell Associates, Inc.
HG took this project from the creation of schematic concepts through construction administration, creating a construction document package of hardscape plans, including a reflecting pool and walled gardens, landscape plans, irrigation plan and lighting plan. We also shepherded the plans through the City of Richmond’s approval process and assisted with requirements for the building’s goal of LEED certification.
DATES Start: 2012 Completion: 2014 DISCIPLINES Landscape Architecture Master Planning TEAM Dave Gerstenmaier, PLA
HG’s concepts for the garden space featured areas for private reflection as well as an area for gatherings of larger family groups. The landscape walls enclose visitors like an embrace, shielding them from public areas like the adjacent parking lot, in addition to providing a feeling of privacy for families supporting loved ones in the nearby hospital.
Memorial Regional Medical Center| Bon Secours Health System
LOCATION South Boston, VA CLIENT Sentara Health Care DATES Start: Completion: DISCIPLINES Landscape Architecture TEAM Dave Gerstenmaier, PLA
Halifax Regional Hospital | Sentara Healthcare HG was tasked with creating a beautiful healing garden for Halifax Regional Hospital. At the central aspect of the healing garden is The Labyrinth. Mimicking the 11-circuit labyrinth in France’s Chartres Cathedral, this 7-circuit labyrinth is open to the community for thought-provoking quiet time.
DePaul Medical Office Building | Bon Secours Health System
Bon Secours Heart Institute
John Randolph Medical Center | HCA HG was tasked to help bolster the presence of the Hospital by improving visual access into the site and site circulation, creating opportunities to improve the grounds through gardens, walking paths, and terraces and also to develop a campus identity. HG provided a site analysis with regards to the desires of the client and created a list of opportunities for the campus. The master plan addressed: • Street Access - Create a 'greener' appearance throughout their street edges by burying utility lines, adding street trees, upgrading plantings, improving off-site pedestrian connections, and providing gateways into the site. • Building Access - Create strong visual clues to the entrances of the building, reconfigure vehicular circulation to reduce conflicts between ambulances/facilities/hospital patrons, and upgrade site design for critical building entrances. • Green Space - Create a fitness/walking trail around the campus to capture views of the Appomattox River, create Cafeteria terrace for employees/patrons, and upgrade central garden into a place to decompress and relax in nature. • Campus Identity - Create a campus standard in lighting, seating, and vehicular control. By having a consistent theme across the campus, the repeated patterns help establish a campus core.
HOSPITAL
CAFETERIA
St. Francis Cancer Institute | Bon Secours Health System LOCATION Midlothian, VA CLIENT Bon Secours Health System ARCHITECT Odell Associates, Inc. DATES Start: 2002 Completion: 2007 DISCIPLINES Landscape Architecture TEAM Dave Gerstenmaier, PLA
The Cancer Institute features a healing garden that is integrated into the design of the building. A wall of glass windows allow patients to enjoy the signature stone wall and water feature surrounded by colorful, lush plantings during long hours of treatment. We chose the warm stone to complement the building, and designed the wall as a backdrop for the fountain that also screens a nearby road. Created as a soothing, comfortable space for patients and family members, this natural, quiet garden provides relaxation that is away from the clinical environment. The team at HG included many specific design features with the patients in mind, such as substituting stone mulch for the typical shredded wood since the odor of wood mulch can sometimes be unpleasant to patients.
LOCATION Richmond, VA
School of Nursing Garden| Virginia Commonwealth University
CLIENT Virginia Commonwealth University
After the opening of the new School of Nursing, VCU contacted HG to help with the design of a garden for the area behind the building. As there was no funding available, HG collaborated with the University Architect and the School of Nursing leadership to prepare a garden concept on a pro bono basis. The resulting design and cost estimate was used as a basis for fundraising and we were later contracted to prepare construction documents.
DATES Start: 2004 Completion: 2008 CONSTRUCTION COST $13.6 M DISCIPLINES Landscape Architecture TEAM David Gerstenmaier, PLA
The VCU School of Nursing garden was designed to provide a peaceful place for nursing students as well as a place to honor the history of nursing education on the MCV campus. Part of the student experience involves work with real patients and their illnesses and the garden is an inviting place for them to relax, study and experience nature. The school’s more-than-100-year history is commemorated by the incorporation of cornerstones from now demolished buildings that housed the school. Our plan created a green space for the students with lush landscaping, two water features, quiet seating areas, flexible seating for dining or outdoor meetings, and a large lawn to accommodate a tent for special occasions. We also incorporated design solutions to correct a drainage problem adjacent to the site and address unforeseen site conditions.
N. Hospital Entrance Court| Virginia Commonwealth University
School of Pharmacy Entrance| Virginia Commonwealth University
Roof Garden | St. Johns Hospital | Springfield, IL
St. Mary’s Chapel Courtyard | Bon Secours Health System
Representative Examples of Healthcare | Master Planning and Landscape Architectural Design Senior Living/Age Specific Autumn Run Bon Secours Ironbridge Retirement Community Alzheimer Garden Broad Street Memory Care Chesterfield County Lucy Corr Nursing Home Gloucester House Assisted Living & Specialized Memory Care Goochland Earl Thompson Property Harper’s Mill Due Diligence Harvest Glen John Rolfe Square Magnolia Lakes Midlothian Wood Norwood Pond Opaca Property Petersburg Tabernacle Senior Housing Reams Road Saddle Creek Farm St. Anthony’s Senior Housing Trellis Crossing Healing, Chapel & Memorial Gardens & Labyrinth Memorial Regional Medical Center Healing Garden St. Anthony Healing Garden St. Francis Contemplative Garden & Labyrinth St. Mary’s Chapel Garden Medical Centers Bon Secours Blackstone Medical Center DePaul Medical Center Landscape Upgrade DePaul Medical Center Streetscape DePaul Medical Center Landscape Upgrade plan DePaul Medical Center-Parking Lot Plan Libbie Medical Center Maryview Medical Center Cooling Tower Maryview Medical Center Landscape Master Plan Maryview Medical Center Main Entrance St. Francis Medical Center Fountains & Water Features Bon Secours Heart Institute Fountain Memorial Regional Medical Center Entrance Fountain Plaza St. Elizabeth’s Entrance & Fountain
St. St. St. St. St. St. St.
Francis Francis Francis Francis Francis Francis Francis
Cancer Center Infusion Pool Cancer Center Water Feature Fountain Fountain 3 Sculptures Medical Center Fountain 5 Medical Center Fountain 6 Roundabout Fountain Concept Design
Children’s Hospitals, Gardens & Playgrounds Children’s Hospital Field Measuring Children’s Hospital Playground Cumberland Children’s Hospital Memorial Regional Medical Center Child Bereavement Garden Memorial Regional Medical Center Children’s Memory Garden Memorial Regional Medical Center Playground St. Francis Hospital Child Care Center Playground St. Mary’s Hospital Child Care Center VCU Medical Center Main Hospital Children’s Garden Green Roofs/Rooftop Gardens St. Francis Green Roof St. Mary’s Green Bay Roof Garden Medical Office Building Bon Secours Ironbridge MOB Renovation Bon Secours Laburnum MOB Bon Secours Hampton Roads MOB Chippenham MOB Chippenham Johnston Willis MOB Depaul MOB DePaul MOB Fountain DePaul MOB Vincent Parking Lot Halifax Regional MOB Harbour Pointe MOB Henrico Doctor’s Hospital MOB Hiaok II Medical Office Building Ironbridge MOB Landscape Upgrades Lynchburg MOB Memorial Regional Medical Center MOB III Expansion Reynolds Crossing MOB #2
Reynolds Crossing MOB #3 Reynolds Crossing MOB #4 Reynolds MOB Irrigation Short Pump MOB Preliminary Site Study St. Francis Child Care/MOB St. Francis MOB II St. Francis MOB Parking Lot St. Francis Watkins Center MOB St. Mary’s Behavioral MOB/Parking St. Mary’s MOB West Watkins Center MOB Woolfolk St. Mary’s MOB Cancer Centers Bon Secours St. Mary’s Radiation/Oncology Harborview Cancer Center St. Francis Cancer Center Parking Lots/Parking Decks Mary Immaculate Hospital Parking Lot Entry Relocation St. Elizabeth Parking Deck St. Francis Median Plantings St. Francis North Parking Lot St. Mary’s New Parking Deck St. Mary’s Hospital – Decatur Phase I Parking Richmond Community Hospital Public Parking Lighting Maryview Lighting Plan VCU Medical Center 11th St. Lighting VCU Medical Center Clay St. Phase1 Lighting VCU Medical Center Clay St Phase 2 Lighting VCU-Massey Garden Lighting Streetscapes VCU Medical Center Clay Street Streetscape VCU Medical Center Clay St. Streetscape Phase 2 VCU Medical Center Streetscapes Phase 3, 4, & 5 Courtyards
Memorial Regional Medical Center Patient Courtyard Renovations VCU Medical Center Physicians Dining Courtyard VCU School of Dentistry Courtyard Landscape Upgrades Bon Secours Heart Institute Landscaping Mary Immaculate Hospital Landscape Upgrade Maryview Hospital Power Plant Landscape/Fence Maryview Hospital Landscape Upgrades Richmond Community Hospital Landscape Concept Westhampton School Landscape Maintenance Oversight Westhampton School Landscape Maintenance Oversight –DePaul Optometrist The Eye Place Huguenot Road Optometrist Virginia Eye Institute Master Plans DePaul Master Plan HCA John Randolph Medical Center Master Plan
design studio 5701 Grove Avenue Richmond, VA 23226Â www.1hg.net