For the last two decades, the privately funded Nancy & Stephen Grand Family House has provided free accommodations for young, often terminally ill patients—and their families—who are being treated at the University of California San Francisco Benioff Children’s Hospital. In 2011, faced with growing demand, the nonprofit organization enlisted San Francisco–based Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects to design a new 80-family facility, which opened in the Mission Bay neighborhood in April 2016, achieving LEED Platinum certification. In developing the design, the architects looked to both the staff and the families for inspiration.

“This is a traumatic experience for families,” notes principal Richard Stacy, “so we wanted the first impression coming through the door to be welcoming and non-institutional.” In this vein, the team created a playroom for young patients and their siblings by the reception area and, at the staff’s request, included private counseling and meditation rooms nearby.