Upon acquiring the Cascade Meadow Wetlands and Environmental Science Center, Saint Mary’s University decided to expand the facility to add space for graduate programs and a physician assistant program that is a collaborative effort between the University and the world-renown Mayo’s School of Health Sciences. Saint Mary’s hired DLR Group to design a complimentary academic building that provides state-of-the-art simulation labs and classrooms for the growing programs. DLR Group’s understated design allows the original building to retain its dramatic presence on the site while continuing the highly sustainable focus of the complex.
The new 10,000 SF addition features a clinical skills lab with exam beds, a simulation lab, classrooms, and faculty spaces. All interior spaces capture views to the wetlands, the site’s most unique feature and the main driver for the design of the original building. DLR Group provided architecture, interior design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and structural engineering services.