Experience
Currently, we are providing design services for Children's Health System and Birmingham's City School System. Also, HOSKINS Architecture was selected to join the design team for the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex's upcoming Multipurpose Facility.
BEFORE AFTER
Based on a long-lasting relationship, Children's Health System continues to trust our experience and professionalism to create design solutions to enhance their high quality of patient care. Over the last couple of decades, Mr. Hoskins and members of the HOSKINS Architecture team have developed solutions from large-scale new construction and site reconfigurations, to small interior renovations and clinic space fit-up for Children's. We believe our vast experience, team-approach and attention to detail increase the efficiency of a project's process and are therefore able to deliver timely and cost-effective solutions.
Galilee Baptist Church
Minister Larry D. Coleman and the Trustees of Galilee Baptist Church required an addition to their existing building for their growing congregation. A master plan was devised to show a 13,000sf addition in phase 1 and an 8,000sf gymnasium in the future. In the master plan, parking, sidewalks, and lighting were planned for the entire campus as well as a plan to preserve the existing trees and complement them with additional landscaping.
In 2003, Galilee Baptist Church decided to begin construction of phase 1 - the new sanctuary addition. The $1.2M project added a three-story building that included a new 7,000sf sanctuary and support spaces. The sanctuary’s 30ft ceiling height, tongue-and-groove wood ceiling and large exposed beams created a warm and inviting place of worship. Cross-shaped windows with frosted glass lined the west wall, creating a glow of diffused light. A new baptismal, chancel, and support spaces for audio-visual equipment were also provided.
Outside the new sanctuary, several offices, classrooms, a conference room, and prayer chapel were added. The small, 300sf chapel provided a quiet, intimate space for the church members to meditate and pray.
Davis-Picard Private Residence
Dr. Davis and Dr. Picard purchased a beautiful, 99-acre property overlooking the Talladega National Forest to construct their dream home. The owners’ love of woodworking, Frank Lloyd Wright’s prairie-style architecture, and the site’s beauty influenced the placement and design of the house. The house was planned atop the highest point of the property, taking advantage of the expansive views. To preserve the ruins of an old plantation home, slave cemetery, and mausoleum existing on the property, the road wound past these landmarks and up the hill to the homesite. The prairie-style design, with low-slung roof and 5 ft. deep eaves, included 3 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, a large living space with double-sided fireplace, and a basement with a wine cellar, library, and exercise room. The interior finishes with wood floors, base and trim, earth-tone wall colors, and massive bricked fireplace, reflect the warmth of Frank Lloyd Wright’s revolutionary designs in the early 1900’s. Dozens of large, operable windows were used for ventilation as well as for the serene views to the National Forest in the distance. On the exterior, the existing swtichgrass was preserved so it could grow in the summer and be used in the winter for hay. A barbeque pit, lap pool, and vegetable garden were planned adjacent to the 900-sq.ft. guest house. The three-car port and wood shop connects to the main house via a trelis-covered walkway.
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
In the past five years, Mr. Hoskins has led 18 design-build and renovation of HUD-funded projects across the southeast, totaling over $75M. The projects largely focused on integrating technology, security, accessibility, and facilitating community interaction among its aging residents.
Bessemer Courthouse Complex
This project stretched over 6 years and cost $71M to reorganize and redefine Jefferson County’s Bessemer Courthouse Complex. The owner and occupants were closely involved in programming, design and construction to implement three component projects to 1) Expand jail to double capacity; 2) Produce new Justice Center with courtrooms, offices and jury assembly; and 3) Renovate the historic Courthouse and adjacent Annex.
Site Planning for the Justice Center was extremely important. The team carefully selected a site and planned the rest of the block for possible expansion. Environmentally sustainable features throughout the complex include day lighting, occupancy sensors, multi-level switching, sun shading, low energy usage glazing, low-flush toilets, gray water recycling for irrigation, thermal mass, and other sustainable features. This will be the first Courthouse in Alabama designed for blast mitigation and attack resistance.
From project inception through construction, the design team met regularly with the County and City of Bessemer Inspections and Fire Departments to facilitate timely communications and decisions to ensure that each portion of the project was completed successfully and on schedule.
Photos: John O'Hagan/GA Studio
George Washington Carver High School for Health Professions, Engineering, and Technology
George Washington Carver High School for Health Professions, Engineering, and Technology was the first new public school in the City of Birmingham in nearly 50 years. This unique educational facility was planned for 2,000 students on an existing golf course overlooking the city of Birmingham. The rolling topography of the site was used to maximize the city views and provide security by positioning the buildings within the existing contours of the site. The building’s rectangular form was divided into three sections: the dining hall, the academic wing, and the gymnasium. Common spaces between the three areas are used during breaks, for pep rallies, and for outdoor teaching.
Not only was Carver High School’s program planned to provide state-of-the-art learning opportunities including a media center, performing arts theater, animation room, cosmetology lab, patient bed lab, but it serves the local community as well. On weekends, when some education facilities lie dormant, Carver’s campus was planned to provide its neighbors with a park to host community ball games and events.
Homewood Middle School
This public school was designed with three priorities in mind: create an extraordinary learning space, create a sense of community, and create a standard of environmental responsibility. The Homewood Board of Education exceeded its mission with the new 180,000 square foot middle school. Not only are 95% of the school’s spaces day-lit, promoting wellness and the optimum learning environment, but this design strategy amounts to 38% energy savings, when compared to a code-compliant school of its same size. Other sustainable design strategies were integrated as well, such as a state-of-the-art building automation system, the building’s orientation for optimal use of daylight, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and recycled, local, and low-VOC materials. Homewood’s school became the first middle school in the United States to achieve a LEED Silver rating for sustainable design practices. In addition to its notoriety for sustainability, its clever design won several industry awards and it has since been published in a half-dozen newspapers, magazines, and journals.
Boy Scouts of America Headquarters
The Birmingham area Boy Scouts of America wanted a building that embodied their vision of providing young men with a "bridge to the future." The design began by taking inspiration from a Roman aqueduct, which is both a building and a bridge. This idea led to the design of two parallel arcades of stacked, granite rubble masonry with office space in between. A single span of double-paned glass in a concealed frame was infilled between each arch. The interior partitions were transparent, to facilitate views out of the arched windows to the surrounding park and beyond. The arcades, stretched between two existing hillsides, were capped with a green roof, planted with native flowers and grasses. The green roof seamlessly bridged the hillsides as well as decreased the cooling load and thus, energy costs. Located just south of Birmingham’s busy Interstate 459, the Boy Scouts of America Birmingham Headquarters serves as a monument to this great organization as well as a beautiful and functional office building.
Hugh Kaul Children's Zoo
As a new addition to celebrate the 50th birthday of the Birmingham Zoo, Alabama’s most popular attraction, the $8.1M Junior League Hugh Kaul Children’s Zoo needed to fit gracefully into the existing zoo, significantly add value to the site, and be able to adapt to changing size, programs, and seasons. The project team planned a 5-acre space including a playground, fountain, petting zoo, carousel and waterfall. The landscape design represented the regions of Alabama, and included rain barrels to teach conservation and sustainability.
An enclosed area in the center provides gathering space, restrooms and a gift shop. The project won several Honor and Merit awards from the American Institute of Architects, both locally and state-wide.
Photos: Lewis Kennedy/GA Studio
Jefferson County Courthouse Addition
This ten-year project required renovation of a 70-year old, 450,000sf vintage courthouse including the addition of 50,000sf to increase capacity and improve function. The building was fully operational and open to the public during all phases of construction.
This highly public job required architects to be conscious of using funds in the most efficient manner possible. Late in construction, new concerns about security post-9/11 required the reconfiguring of state-of-the-art security systems to meet new federal regulations. Dedicated records storage space was necessary to serve the multiple functions of the courthouse, including county government and justice institutions, to keep files accessible and easy to locate without clogging the offices where day-to-day operations occur. These needs were fully satisfied and the county remains well-served by the renovation.
Photos: John O'Hagan/GA Studio
Jefferson County Family Courts
Situated near Smithfield in west Birmingham, the Jefferson County Family Court Building was in disrepair after 70 years of use and poor-quality interior alterations. Over the years, as court activities and staff increased, the existing facility became overcrowded. Jefferson County not only needed to restore their existing building, but also build an addition to accommodate their current and future needs.
Careful planning was used so the Courthouse could remain operational during construction. Upon completion, the building quadrupled in size, from an original 26,000sf to 112,000sf. The existing, historic exterior was restored and remained the main entrance into the building. The existing interior was renovated to accommodate more administrative spaces and offices. To accommodate additional courts, probation services, and secure parking, a three-story addition was built. The addition’s façade was designed to complement the existing building’s historic character. A direct-access corridor serviced each courtroom to allow for private transport of juvenile offenders from the adjacent detention facility.