Gonda Building

Rochester, Minnesota

Owner:

Mayo Clinic

Architect:

Ellerbe Becket, Inc.

Size:

1,700,000 sq. ft.

Delivery Method:

General Trade Contractor

Connected to the Mayo Building on nearly every floor and also to the Rochester Methodist Hospital by seven stories of skyway, the Gonda Building stands as one of the largest interconnected medical facilities of its kind in the world.

Construction challenges were of equal magnitude. The Knutson team demolished one facade of the existing Mayo Building, removed the steel plate and installed structural supports to create a new passageway to the Mayo Building. While connecting new and existing structures, Knutson paid careful attention to infection control requirements, installing temporary walls with HEPA filters and isolating air intake from HVAC systems to prevent cross-contamination. Finally, when a large portion of the new building was already occupied, newly available equipment necessitated design changes, extending the construction process and requiring Knutson to comply with the complexities of interim life safety plans for patient and staff protection. Knutson was responsible for coordinating with more than 100 contractors and vendors working on the project.

This 1,614,600 sq. ft. project consisted of a new 22-story medical facility designed for a future eight-story expansion. Knutson poured all the concrete for the project and was responsible for all interior stonework and miscellaneous metals including ornamental metal. They installed all building accessories, including nearly 3,000 doors and performed all landscaping and exterior site concrete work. Knutson also installed support frames for microscopes and all owner furnished medical equipment.