Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital Building 200 Lobby Renovation & Expansion

Early this week we received the interior photography for the renovation and expansion of the Lobby for Building 200 on the campus of the Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital in Hines, Illinois. For this particular assignment Epstein was the design architect, interior designer and full-service engineer (civil, MEP/FP, and structural).

For Building 200, which serves as Hines' main entrance, Epstein's architects and engineers were responsible for improving and expanding an existing 6,000 sf hospital lobby and surrounding site. Epstein's services included the redevelopment of the site work, traffic patterns, and parking to the north of the hospital, which have helped to improve the patient approach and drop-off. There is also a new exterior canopy and wall which provides a revitalized entrance to the existing hospital. In order to make the expansion happen, the existing precast columns, structure, and roof were removed and the entire volume of space was increased.

The improved lobby that you see here includes:

• A two-story, open, naturally illuminated entry space with clerestories and skylights
• Waiting area with interior landscaping
• Feature walls with shadow boxes displaying Veteran art and artifacts
• New Administration & Benefits and Information desk areas
• Café with seating area in the repurposed and expanded corridor
• New restrooms

The Building 200 Lobby projects is one of many that Epstein has been proud to design and/or engineer on the Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital over the past 10 years and it's been our pleasure to help provide improved spaces and services for our veterans.

To get a sense of the dramatic changes/improvements to this space here are a few before and after collages of the Building 200 Lobby.

The Epstein team responsible for this incredible transformation includes project manager, David Scott, AIA; architectural team members Jennifer Heiney, AIA, LEED AP, Lori Chandler, AIA, Tom Pociask, AIA & Brad Hartig, LEED AP; structural engineers John Lach, PE, SE and Raveesh Varma, PE, SE; civil engineers David Hilty, PE and Ben Reber, PE; and our MEP/FP engineering team of Yan Weng, PE, Michael Shepherd, PE and Paul Valente, CPD.

Great job team we are really proud of your wonderful work for such a deserving client and end-user!