The New Broughton Hospital in Morganton, NC will house 382 patients for acute and long-term mental health treatment.  The new facility replaces the original campus buildings, built between the late 1880s and the early 1960s.  Where the original Avery building commanded the hilltop, the new facility nestles into the rolling hillside below.  The building is two stories tall from the public side, sitting just behind a ridgeline.  The new hospital takes advantage of the topography of the site to allow utilities and services to run underneath the main activity areas without interference.
 
The architecture of the new building defers to the older campus, creating a contemporary interpretation of the late Victorian “Kirkbride” plan.  The new hospital pulls all functions together into one envelope while maintaining the appearance of a campus setting using smaller wings with outdoor courtyards and multiple rooflines.  The patient living areas,  treatment areas and administrative functions all collect along a central spine which announces itself with a roof form that echoes the roofline of the original building.  This spine serves as an internal street, and is a gateway between the more private patient areas on one side, and the group treatment and activity areas on the other.  Administrative and clinical needs are on either end of the spine.  The group treatment “hubs” frame a great lawn that allow views out over the bucolic landscape while maintaining the patients’ need for privacy.

The vision for the new Hospital constitutes the philosophical foundation that will guide development and growth of treatment services into the future.  It includes a series of goals including: The establishment of a normalizing environment that aids in the rehabilitation of patients; Planning for managed change; Provision of a strong sense of community; and Direct and meaningful connections to the landscape.  New treatment models for psychiatric care focus on normalizing connections to the landscape and providing spaces to accommodate the teaching of social skills.