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Developers present MUSC freestanding emergency department design; DRB asks for more brick, stronger pedestrian ties
Summary
A joint MUSC/Intuitive Health team presented a proposed 12,500-square-foot freestanding emergency department for North Main Street. Board members praised the massing and ‘sail’ identity element but urged greater use of brick, improved pedestrian connections and softer street‑facing treatments.
Developers of a proposed MUSC freestanding emergency department (FSED) at 1310 North Main Street presented conceptual plans to the Summerville Design Review Board, and the board offered extensive feedback focused on materials and the pedestrian experience.
Applicant representatives described the project as a 12,500‑square‑foot FSED with a prominent patient drop‑off facing the front (Main Street) and an ambulance canopy at the rear. Jeff Webb of ADC Engineering said the team aims to reuse much of the existing site footprint and maintain mature trees where possible; parking needs were estimated “somewhere in the 55 to 60 spaces” range (the team noted their current figure was about 57 spaces). The design team explained that MUSC requested a signature “sail” element on the front elevation as a campus identity marker.
Board members supported the proposal’s intent but raised repeated concerns about materials and the pedestrian experience. Peter said the side elevation felt “very fortress‑like” and urged more softness and rhythm. Several members recommended brick as a primary material to better match nearby commercial and Lowcountry character — Candy noted the area’s historic brick manufacture and suggested matching the red‑brown tonal range used on neighboring storefronts. Members also pressed the team to improve the walk from parking to the building, create deeper foundation planting zones so trees and landscaping can be effective, and avoid long, unbroken walls that feel sterile at pedestrian scale.
Michael Ludden, the architect on the application, described design constraints tied to function and patient privacy: higher window placements along exam rooms preserve patient privacy while admitting daylight. He said the project nevertheless can explore additional modulation — awnings, eyebrow canopies or pilasters — and a more brick‑forward palette. “This is a health care facility… it is intended to be more of a neighborhood facility,” Ludden said, noting the dual urgent‑care/ED model and the operational need for discrete exam‑room fenestration.
The board did not vote; the review was conceptual only. Staff and board members recommended the applicant return with refined materials studies (sample board), larger scale for the sail identity if feasible, a lighting plan, and a clearer pedestrian/landscape section showing sidewalks, tree types and how the building will tie to adjacent sidewalks and the Azalea Square context.
