Hershkowitz Model

A 7,500 square foot Eco-friendly medical office designed in the Mizner Mediterranean style.

THE NEW MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING designed for Dr. Douglas Hershkowitz’s neurosurgery practice is a 7,500 square foot, single story building placed on a previously developed one acre site on U.S. 41/Tamiami Trail in Port Charlotte, Florida. While the design of the building evokes a very traditional Mizner Mediterranean aesthetic, energy optimization, including use of renewable energy sources, provides the building with a high performance, green building component. The polygonal shaped site, coupled with a dedicated access easement through the site, and the local jurisdiction’s parking requirements for healthcare occupancies and minimal front setback requirements, severely limited the options for placement of the building on the site.

hershkowitz_model – architectural firm in Sarasota, FL

The design of the building and site are conceived to contain and treat a high percentage of site water and utilize roof top rainwater and roof top HVAC condensate water for landscape irrigation. The dumpster foundations provide the cistern for the storage of rooftop and condensate rainwater for irrigation; an outfall from the cistern to the sub-surface storm water structure is to be provided. All hardscape storm water will be fully contained on the site in surface and sub-surface storm water management areas/structures. High solar reflectance index (SRI) concrete paving materials with be used for the site hardscape and high SRI roofing materials for building waterproofing to minimize heat island effect, both roof and non-roof. The site lighting design will conform with IESNA requirements to minimize nighttime light pollution and trespass.

This building structure features concrete and masonry walls and structural and structural steel roof framing. The building walls and roofs are fully insulated at the exterior perimeter; all spaces, including unused attic area, are a part of the insulated envelope and considerably surpass the envelope requirements of ASHRAE 90.1 and the Energy Efficiency Requirements of the Florida Building Code. Windows are double glazed, argon filled and tinted. High efficiency, two speed compressor units (roof top) are utilized for all space cooling. Primary water heating is from condenser unit heat recovery with secondary electrical backup. A rooftop photovoltaic array will provide up to 15% of the buildings electrical energy needs; the building electrical service will include net metering of excess power. Daylighting is provided to 90% of the occupied spaces.