The Essa Flory Hospice Center, Lancaster, is Pennsylvania´s only freestanding hospice. The Center is redefining the way we care for people during the last days of their lives.

Owned and operated by Hospice of Lancaster County, this 32,000 square-foot Center combines two, one-story patient care wings with a two-story administration area. The Center is the base for the organization´s county-wide care operations.

The Hospice Center was designed and built around a unique concept - that terminally ill patients deserve a place, which looks and feels like "home" when being at home isn´t feasible. Benchmark Construction was intimately involved in the design and construction of the facility.

A first view of the Center hints of "home". Its peaked-roof profile and stucco-like walls with dark trim are reminiscent of a pastoral country estate familiar in Lancaster County´s agrarian setting.

The two patient wings, each with six patient "homes," are the centerpiece of the Hospice. All patient "homes" have the same essential elements — a bedroom, bath, solarium and a private patio. Each group of six shares a living room, and kitchen/dining area. Yet each patient "home" has its own personality. Varying combinations of 12 colors, 18 carpet designs and 32 wallpaper patterns individualize every room.

Each wing was positioned to give every bedroom and solarium maximum exposure to the comforting rays of the sun throughout the year. All patios have slatted trellises to diminish harshness, yet still let sunlight penetrate into the rooms throughout the day. Wide French doors allow beds to be wheeled to the patio so bed-confined patients can be taken outside.

The loggia, a hallway that connects the patient wings and administration building, serves as a calming patient and family passage area. Its tall windows, painted with large spring flowers, embrace an outdoor courtyard. A softly bubbling fountain adds its voice to this serene setting, where patients and families may use an adjacent meditation chapel or the resource library.

Benchmark teamwork and quality craftsmanship has helped Hospice of Lancaster County create "home" and a remarkable atmosphere of peace for the terminally ill and their families.

Location: Lancaster, PA

Design Professionals: Reese, Lower, Patrick & Scott, Ltd. Architects

Total SF: 32,000 SF

Value: $ 4.2 million

Awards:  1997 ABC National EXCELLENCE IN CONSTRUCTION AWARD

1996 Mid Atlantic Builders Exchange CRAFTSMANSHIP AWARD

Services Provided: Preconstruction/Construction Management & General Construction Services

"I offer unconditional endorsement and affirmation of superior service, workmanship and dedication provided by Benchmark Construction Company, Inc. Teamwork, trust and mutual respect were always evident from upper management personnel to those working at the construction site." - Gregory J. Scott, AIA Reese, Lower, Patrick & Scott, Ltd.