Mascioni & Behrmann took on the design of a new facility for the Staten Island community. Located in the newly renovated Staten Island Mall, the space’s environmental and design challenges called for creative approaches to providing a safe, modern environment.

Because the different departments shared a single entrance, we sought to distinguish between the neighborhood care and remaining clinical spaces. Our team positioned a glass vestibule in the center of the new storefront so it could serve both sides equally. We further emphasized a centralized system of care by placing the nurses’ stations and private offices in the middle of the clinical space. This allowed for better communication between doctors and nurses, a direct line of sight from the nurses’ station to the exam rooms, and equal distance from the nurses’ station to most of the patient rooms. We used demountable glass partitions in the department entrance and offices to encourage communication, as well as solid-paneled versions of those partitions in patient rooms to protect privacy.

Designing the slab-on-grade space’s underground structure presented its own challenges. Because the site was previously the Staten Island Airport in the 1950s, the soil contained discarded plane fuels. Our team of experienced engineers and environmental consultants used environmental vapor barriers and sub-slab depressurization systems to design a structure safe for patients and mall guests.

We designed the neighborhood care space to provide flexibility for staff work, community events, and resources to help the Staten Island community live healthy lives. The resulting space made for a state-of-the-art facility where patients’ needs could be efficiently met in a healing environment.