Quinte Health Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital, Picton, Ontario, Canada: First Look

The 97,000-square-foot replacement hospital prioritizes sustainable design strategies including all-mass-timber construction, geothermal energy systems, and a high-performance building envelope.

Published: May 5, 2025Posted by Tracey Walker

Courtesy of HDR

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Quinte Health Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital, Picton, Ontario, Canada

Expected to be completed in 2027, the Quinte Health Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital (PECMH) in Picton, Ontario, Canada, will make its mark as one of the first all-mass-timber acute care hospitals in North America.

A net-zero-ready sustainable infrastructure will feature a low-carbon mass timber structure, a geothermal energy system, solar panels, green roofs, and a high-performance building envelope. The hospital’s sustainable design will serve as a model for future healthcare projects, demonstrating how this typically high-energy-use typology can be designed with sustainable building practices.

The pride of the community

Prince Edward County has long taken pride in its local hospital—a place rooted in community and care. Over the years, PECMH has served generations of residents and thousands of seasonal visitors to this popular tourist and cottage destination

However, the aging infrastructure of the current hospital was no longer conducive with modern medicine and required replacement. Timber was a logical choice for structural material because it is faster in construction saving both time and cost. Because it sequesters carbon better than any other structural material, it appealed to the community and the region which have been implementing many other sustainable strategies to improve the area.

The PECMH Foundation (Picton, Ontario), which raises money for local building infrastructure and maintenance, equipment, and medical innovations, spearheaded a “Back the Build” campaign with community support to raise $30 million for the project. In Canada, the government provides approximately 90 percent of the capital cost while the hospital raises the remainder for the project.

HDR leads hospital design

The 97,000-square-foot hospital, designed by architecture and interior design firm HDR (Kingston and Ottawa, Ontario), will better match the quality of healthcare delivered by the Quinte Health Prince Edward County Hospital providers bringing a new emergency department and helipad, diagnostic imaging, cardio-diagnostic services, 23 inpatient beds with ambulatory, laboratory, and dialysis services to the community.

Timber creates a human environment that is warm, inviting and more akin to where people can relate to the way a building is put together. The new hospital embraces biophilic design principals such as natural timber, an off-stage garden located on the north side for staff respite and privacy, and views of nature throughout the hospital.

For more, read “Rise Of Mass Timber Construction In Healthcare Design.”