Location: Marion, VA
The old Smyth County Community Hospital was given to Emory & Henry College shortly after the construction of the new hospital with the intention that it would be used for the development of a new School of Health Sciences. The renovation of the original hospital tower was planned over a series of carefully coordinated phases with significant budget restraints to consider. At the project’s inception, RRMM’s programming team met with key representatives of the college to develop a program for the facility. Projected enrollment was considered in order to develop and refine space needs for the facility.
A schematic design was developed that removed most of the disjointed and haphazard interior partitions that had been constructed in a series of additions. The design also created labs and classrooms as required for the Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Physician Assistant curricula. The original tower is considered historically significant both because of its international style and its status as the first racially integrated hospital in the state. It is currently on the historic register in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is being reviewed for inclusion on the National Register.
