Design Profile: Entrance Pavilion at PHMC Public Health Campus On Cedar

The PHMC Public Health Campus on Cedar is an integrated healthcare campus serving West and Southwest Philadelphia. Glass plays an important and inspiring role in its new entrance, bridging historic preservation with contemporary design. The mission was to create an accessible entrance to an existing stately structure. The glass serves as a gateway to the reimagined vestibule, which connects to the main level of the building five feet above grade, and invites the community in from the outside. The custom 38.5-foot structural glass wall system was designed to reveal and celebrate the limestone façade of the existing building through natural light. Rather than concealing the original architecture, the transparent enclosure is now an inviting space for visitors and a connection to the past. In close collaboration with a leading glass manufacturer, the design team achieved a careful balance of aesthetics, performance, and constructability. The minimalist use of glass fins, along with a precisely coordinated horizontal mullion, was optimized to deliver a solution that is both efficient and visually striking. 

Project: Entrance Pavilion at PHMC Public Health Campus on Cedar  

Location: West Philadelphia 

Client: PHMC Public Health Campus 

Project Size: 2,500 square feet 

Project Team:  

FIFTEEN Architecture + Design (Architecture) 

DCI Engineers (Structural Engineering)  

BEAM Ltd.v (Lighting Design) 

DEDC (MEP Engineering) 

Target Building (Contracting) 

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