WESTMINSTER — , medicine, surgeries and doctor visits will be complemented by soil, seeds, stone and water.
Situated on the 50-acre campus amid miles of walking trails will be three gardens: a 7,000-square-foot healing garden; a smaller prayer garden; and an expansive, public community garden.
The healing garden holds a special significance for St. Anthony’s, which is a Catholic facility, said Carole Peet, the campus chief executive officer.
” Peet said. “The community and healing garden will be open to not just patients, visitors and hospital staff but the entire community.”
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Peet said community engagement was a goal when designing the 350,000-square-foot addition to the medical center off 144th Avenue and Interstate 25.
In the early stages of the design process for the healing garden, landscape architect Eric Taylor of studioINSITE, the firm designing the garden, contemplated people’s connection to Christ and God.
At the healing garden, visitors can walk along a cross-shaped path from the chapel to the main entry. In front of the chapel is a water wall and reflection pool representing cleansing, redemption and the heavens. As the water flows south, it moves into more earthly elements like stone, soil, a fire hearth and plants.
“We really wanted to get people outside of the hospital and away from needles, away from medications and some of that stuff and into an area where they can relax, reflect and feel a little bit better,” Taylor said.
Visitors can socialize around a fireplace with couch seating and benches throughout the healing garden. Located right outside the campus cafeteria, a barbecue grill, large patio and chairs will help the healing garden become a community hub.
“In general, I never think of a healing garden as being completed once it’s built,” Taylor said. “They need to be thought of as a longterm design that’s constantly evolving … we’ve got movable furniture that will give people a chance to make this their own and change things about it.”
The community gardens are expected to be completed this spring and will have raised beds for community use. An art project spearheaded by artist Barry Rose will see tiles adorned with community artwork and representing the four seasons placed in the middle of the garden beds.
“For me, this project has come to represent how we as a people can work together for the common good … ” Rose said. “The title is called ‘Seasons Change and So Do We.’ People in a hospital are often in a transitional point in their lives — birth, serious illness and so on and so forth — so change is the constant.”
Austin Briggs: 303-954-1729, abriggs@denverpost.com or twitter.com/abriggs
