Rio East Medical Commons Charlottesville, Virginia The Rio East Medical Commons consists of six private medical suites grouped in three separate buildings adjacent to a well-traveled connector road within the urban ring of Charlottesville. This location offers the members of the Commons both a highly visible location for their new offices as well as the opportunity to establish a shared identity among the individual practices. The design sought to provide balance between each medical office's desire to establish a recognizable individual presence within the Commons with the developer's goal of establishing a sense of place for the entire project. Exterior elements including similar entry porticos, brick detailing, and roof style relate the three buildings in common themes, while the window spacing, building footprints, and entry areas were tailored to the individual needs of each practice. One of the doctor's suites, pictured at right, was designed to provide a warm, welcoming atmosphere and a level of privacy for each patient. BRW Architects worked closely with the doctor to design an office layout and material palette which fostered these ideas. In the suites which BRW Architects did not do the interior design, collaboration with the client's specialized design and systems consultants during the construction of the suites established an economy of scale which helped both the project developer and the medical practices reach their budget goals. Through the common exterior building designs and, in some cases, interior space plans provided by the architect, the individual medical and dental practices successfully expressed their individual character and professional style.  download project as .pdf