February 7, 2020 - 14:38 AMT
Glendale approves building for Armenian-American health center

The City Council of Glendale, California, has unanimously approved the construction of a daringly-designed building for a community health center created by Armenian-American physician, Dr. Noobar Janoian, in 1999, The Architect's Newspaper reports.

The building is authored by Los Angeles-based architecture firm P-A-T-T-E-R-N-S and Santa Monica-based Sharif, Lynch: Architecture.

When complete, the Janoian Building will be the new home of All For Health, Health For All, the local community health center, and will include rentable office space, ground-floor retail, and a small amenity space in the terrace. As approved, Glendale residents can expect to see a 5-story, 70-foot-tall complex rise on the site.

The five-story building’s shifting character on the corner of Broadway and Isabel Street is designed to visually connect the urban promenade of the stylistically-diverse Glendale Civic Center.

The building’s irregularly-striated brise-soleil system and exterior voids along Isabel Street contrast the smooth, unbroken glass facade to break up the structure’s otherwise imposing presence. A series of exterior soffits and cantilevers unify the building’s envelope while adding continuous open balconies accessible via the medical office spaces. The health center will be set back along Isabel Street to make room for a small pocket park, for which Armenian artist Zadik Zadikian was commissioned to create a public mural as a backdrop that reflects the community’s diverse citizenship.

Construction on the Janoian Building will begin this summer and is expected to be completed by late next year.