AB3D

EXTENSION OF RIGA 2nd HOSPITAL AND RECONSTRUCTION OF THE EXISTING BUILDING

Team: J. Mitenbergs, K. Galenieks, I. L. Ramata, I. Lapiņš, P. Spuriņš, U. Tučs

Location: Riga, Gimnastikas street 1

Status: Competition

Year: 2024

Site area: 14 868.1 m²

Building area (total): 4455.7 m²

Floor area (of the new extension): 11 008.7 m²

A Place to Regain Health and Strength

The proposal for the new building of the 2nd hospital has been developed both functionally and visually, taking into account its location within the hospital park, as well as considering the physical and mental health of patients and staff. The layout of the new building is characterized by a clear and easily readable arrangement of departments and zones, allowing patients to navigate the spaces with ease and enabling staff to save energy by avoiding unnecessary travel distances.

The visual design of the building is influenced by resort architecture, which, combined with the park and the many trees that are planned to be preserved in the project solution, serves as an additional healing element.

1
2
3
4

Floor plans

Concept

The overall development concept for the plot has been designed so that the existing hospital building volume, together with the new building volume, forms an organic and harmonious interplay between the two structures. The new building volume has been positioned and designed on the site to:

Ensure maximum convenience for emergency medical transport access from Vaiņodes Street to the reception and emergency medical (traumatology) department located on the first floor of the building.
Create a convenient, visually clear, and intuitively easy-to-find main entrance for visitors to the hospital.
Respect the red line and the building line of Vaiņodes Street, thereby integrating organically into the existing urban context of Vaiņodes Street.
Ensure that the new building’s division into visually readable volumes harmoniously fits the characteristic scale and height of the Vaiņodes Street buildings.
Preserve as many valuable trees growing on the site as possible, allowing the building to harmonize with the surrounding tree landscape.
Place the hospital’s functional blocks clearly within distinguishable parts of the building volume, allowing visitors to quickly and intuitively navigate the building and easily find the required services.
Enable convenient access to all departments and services from the atrium located in the central part of the building, which features the main staircase and elevator.
Create practical, glazed above-ground connections to the inpatient departments located in the existing building, ensuring ease of use for hospital staff.
Develop a connection to the existing building at the basement level and install two new elevators within the existing building volume to provide convenient access for visitors to the inpatient departments. This also ensures easy access to the hospital’s administrative spaces planned for the 5th and 6th floors, the conference rooms, as well as the hall on the 4th floor, etc.
Ensure accessibility and universal design solutions, making the building easy to use for all visitors, with particular attention to the hospital’s specialization in traumatology and orthopedics.
Create a modern, visually appealing, and optimistic building image as viewed from the outside, achieved through harmonious integration into the environment, the layout of building volumes, and the use of high-quality façade materials.
Introduce glazing in the building's public areas and incorporate greenery and planting elements inside the public spaces to create an atmosphere of lightness, naturalness, and healthiness, promoting recovery, rehabilitation, and overall well-being.