CannonDesign + NEUF architect(e)s complete phase one of CHUM, downtown Montreal's new hospital

CannonDesign + NEUF architect(e)s recently announced the completed first phase of the Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, or CHUM. The approximately 3 million square-foot project, which began in 2009, will be North America's largest healthcare construction project as well as Canada's largest public-private healthcare project by far.

In recent months, CHUM has garnered some international acclaim. In July, it got shortlisted for the 2017 World Architecture Festival and INSIDE: World Festival of Interiors competitions that are happening in Berlin this November. It also won a Future Healthy Built Environment award from the International Academy for Design & Health in Stockholm.

“Phase I, now complete, delivers the hospital’s core healthcare capabilities, including all patient rooms, all operating theatres, diagnostic and therapeutics, as well as the Oncology program, leaving only offices, a conference center, a few ambulatory spaces, and additional parking for Phase 2. This allows the Quebec population to benefit from the much-needed state-of-the-art healthcare infrastructure years sooner than originally anticipated.”

“The 22-story complex will play an important role in regenerating the neglected East-end of downtown Montreal, anchoring the Quartier de la Santé, Montreal’s new healthcare district,” the design team says. “The design team approached the project from all scales, including the large-scale urban element, the local neighborhood context, and the fine grain of a human component, central to its vocation as a place of healing.”

“The design team applied parametric design on the building envelope and the use of 3D-printed models in coordination to integrate heritage components...”

“Each of the hospital's 772 rooms includes ample space for family involvement and expansive windows that offer views of the surrounding city. Importantly, the entire building is designed following universal design principles, and impressively, the vast majority of the 12,000+ rooms in the building were designed following a small number of standardized room templates.”

Going beyond the Quebec government's 1 percent-minimum requirement of dedicating a public development’s budget to the integration of art, the new CHUM campus will have 13 large-scale artworks and house the highest concentration of public art in Montreal since Expo 67, according to the design team.

“We have integrated the art directly into the architecture of the complex in ways that blur the lines between the two and provides a more human experience to the visitor and staff”, explains Chichmanian. “In fact, many components of the buildings themselves can be considered as works of art, including the amphitheater, the reconstructed steeple, Maison Garth and the Space of Contemplation—forming a series of architectural objects animating Saint-Denis Street. Perhaps the best example is the passerelle, an aerial bridge now spanning across Sanguinet Street with its translucent arch emerging from the perforations of the copper shroud enveloping it.”

“It’s remarkably rewarding to see so many years of preparation, planning, design and intense effort come to life,” said Jose Silva, Principal for CannonDesign. “The CHUM has always been an extraordinary project—from the bold vision that set it in motion nearly a decade ago to the beautiful building it has now become.”

Completion of Phase 2 is currently scheduled for 2021.

More project images in the gallery below.