2017 AL Design Awards: Diane L. Max Health Center, Planned Parenthood

Commendable Achievement • Interior Lighting

2 MIN READ
Light, color, and architecture are woven together to create a comfortable and friendly environment.

Michael Moran Photography

Light, color, and architecture are woven together to create a comfortable and friendly environment.

The building's new facade features large windows to let natural light into the interiors.

Michael Moran Photography

The building's new facade features large windows to let natural light into the interiors.

The facility was once a warehouse. (Before image)

Michael Moran Photography

The facility was once a warehouse. (Before image)

Architecture and light play a transformative role for Planned Parenthood’s new Diane L. Max Health Center in Queens, N.Y. Housed in a former storage warehouse, the building has been reconfigured to fit into the surrounding urban context.

The waiting room. Ceiling pop-ups are lit with linear LEDs and help define the seating areas below.

Michael Moran Photography

The waiting room. Ceiling pop-ups are lit with linear LEDs and help define the seating areas below.

The waiting area on the second floor.

Michael Moran Photography

The waiting area on the second floor.

Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design (CBBLD) was asked by Stephen Yablon Architecture to create a modern lighting scheme that would have a “bright and welcoming” feel. CBBLD devised a plan that uses natural light as a primary source coupled with electric light—both in terms of finishes and color temperature.

Surfaces painted blue help to define the circulation areas.

Michael Moran Photography

Surfaces painted blue help to define the circulation areas.

The front desk area. Colored coves provide a contrast to the white interiors.

Michael Moran Photography

The front desk area. Colored coves provide a contrast to the white interiors.

For reception and the waiting areas, 26W 3500K downlights complement the natural light that enters the building from the new windows. Free-form ceiling pop-ups with neutral-white linear LED sources define the seating areas below. The same 3500K downlights are used in the corridors, where the walls and stairs are painted blue to define vertical circulation.

Neutral white light sources illuminate the corridor walls and floor, allowing the fixed-color LED coves to assist with wayfinding.

Michael Moran Photography

Neutral white light sources illuminate the corridor walls and floor, allowing the fixed-color LED coves to assist with wayfinding.


Fixed-color—magenta, orange, and amber—covelighting serves as wayfinding, aiding visitors in their transition from public to private spaces. Skylights in the windowless patient recovery area, along with a decorative wall sconce, provide a residential feel. Overall, the color selection and composition was carefully chosen to have a calming effect creating a comfortable and friendly environment for patients and staff.

Skylights provide ambient light in the patient recovery area and a wall-mounted reading light adds a residential touch.

Michael Moran Photography

Skylights provide ambient light in the patient recovery area and a wall-mounted reading light adds a residential touch.


Jury Comments
The simplicity is beautiful. • The lighting design is done skillfully and thoughtfully. • There is a creative humbleness to this design that is refreshing.

The offices use a 24 x 24 recessed linear fluorescent 24W 3500K fixture. The combination of fluorescent and LED sources allowed the project to achieve a 5 percent energy savings beyond the stringent limit of 0.90 watts per square foot.

Michael Moran Photography

The offices use a 24 x 24 recessed linear fluorescent 24W 3500K fixture. The combination of fluorescent and LED sources allowed the project to achieve a 5 percent energy savings beyond the stringent limit of 0.90 watts per square foot.

Details
Project: Diane L. Max Health Center, Planned Parenthood, Queens, N.Y. • Client: Planned Parenthood New York City • Architect: Stephen Yablon Architecture, New York • Lighting Designer: Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design, New York • Lighting Team Members: Francesca Bettridge, Marty Salzberg, Renata Gallo • Photographer: Michael Moran Photography • Project Size: 14,400 square feet • Project Cost: $9 million • Lighting Cost: Withheld • Watts per Square Foot/Code Compliance: ASHRAE 90.1 • Manufacturers: Acuity Brands/Lithonia Lighting, Artemide, iLight Technologies, Lucifer Lighting, Lutron, Philips Lightolier

About the Author

Elizabeth Donoff

Elizabeth Donoff is Editor-at-Large of Architectural Lighting (AL). She served as Editor-in-Chief from 2006 to 2017. She joined the editorial team in 2003 and is a leading voice in the lighting community speaking at industry events such as Lightfair and the International Association of Lighting Designers Annual Enlighten Conference, and has twice served as a judge for the Illuminating Engineering Society New York City Section’s (IESNYC) Lumen Award program. In 2009, she received the Brilliance Award from the IESNYC for dedicated service and contribution to the New York City lighting community. Over the past 11 years, under her editorial direction, Architectural Lighting has received a number of prestigious B2B journalism awards. In 2017, Architectural Lighting was a Top Ten Finalist for Magazine of the Year from the American Society of Business Publication Editors' AZBEE Awards. In 2016, Donoff received the Jesse H. Neal Award for her Editor’s Comments in the category of Best Commentary/Blog, and in 2015, AL received a Jesse H. Neal Award for Best Media Brand (Overall Editorial Excellence).Prior to her entry into design journalism, Donoff worked in New York City architectural offices including FXFowle where she was part of the project teams for the Reuters Building at Three Times Square and the New York Times Headquarters. She is a graduate of Bates College in Lewiston, Me., and she earned her Master of Architecture degree from the School of Architecture at Washington University in St. Louis.

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