CREJ

December 2020 \ BUILDING DIALOGUE \ 83 T he new $34.4 million Health Care Ca- reer Center at Front Range Communi- ty College officially opened its doors. Designed “to be better prepared to support health care needs in our com- munities and our frontline heroes,” the facility is integrating technology, hands-on training and sim- ulation in a safe learning environment to bring new health care workers and nurses to the workforce. Our design-build team of Hord Coplan Macht and Haselden Construction recently completed the 61,000-square-foot Health Care Careers Center located on the Larimer campus. The new facility, coined Grays Peak, consolidates the college’s health sciences programs into one state-of-the-art facility, including classrooms, skills labs, simulations labs, small group learning areas and collaborative space to support FRCC’s health care programs. The center will educate frontline health care workers, providing students with the hands-on training and simulated medical settings with experience in “real world” environ- ments. The new building is located at the intersection of Shields Street and Harmony Road, at one of the busiest intersections in Fort Collins, making for a highly visible project site that provides an opportuni- ty for the building to create a high-profile “gateway” to campus that also allows for a stronger community connection. It was designed to offer that sense of connection with the community with flexible spaces to grow and transform for future needs. Our team integrated and planned for a truly high-tech, hands-on learning environment that includes skills labs, simulation stations and collaborative work spaces to meet the current and future needs of the students and fac- ulty. The building design includes a high-profile atrium at the core of the building that reaches out toward the community at the intersection and pulls students into the building from the heart of campus. The cen- ter provides several community amenities, including the Front Range Dental Clinic, staffed by licensed dentists and dental hygienists, and offers clinical experience to students enrolled in the Dental Assisting program as well as dental care to the Northern Colorado community. It also provides a community connection with the integrative health Front Range Community College New Health Care Career Center Opens Gwen Gilley, AIA, LEED AP BD+C Principal, Hord Coplan Macht