Page 5 - SilverLinings Issue 5

The area in front of the Patricia Regnemer Main House is now a stunning and inviting landscape with wildflower gardens, granite stairways,
pedestrian walkways, and a centerpiece waterfall.
“For thousands of years, humans have known that the beauty of the natural world is therapeutic. Sanitariums and hospitals
have always been built in physically attractive environments that incorporate living, growing trees, landscapes, water, and other features of the natural world,” Silver Hill Hospital President and Medical Director Andrew J. Gerber, MD, PhD. says. “It has always been one of the things our patients at Silver Hill value about the hospital.”
A generous gift from a grateful family member of two Silver Hill Hospital patients made the transition possible. “We are extremely grateful for this gift and proud that our treatment of the family members led to such a thoughtful and generous contribution,” Dr. Gerber says.
The project started in August 2021 and was completed this summer. The wildflower garden has been planted but will take about three years to become fully established. The area also includes an area for group meetings to be held, as well as for patients to relax, reflect and reconnect with others.
The pedestrian walkways
serve the dual purpose of adding aesthetic beauty and enhancing safety on the West Campus by keeping pedestrians off the roads and driveways.
Director of Safety and Security Pete Porcelli said COVID- related supply chain issues caused delays in the construction, and it was a challenge to keep the active work areas safe and aesthetically pleasing at the same time, but he is happy with how the project looks.
“It was a big project; one of the biggest projects I’ve overseen in my career because there were a lot of moving parts. There’s a certain satisfaction in seeing it come to fruition,” Porcelli
says. Porcelli said all the vendors and other Silver Hill staff members such as Dr. Gerber, Chief Quality Officer
Lisa Benton, Chief Financial Officer Rick Markello, Chief Advancement Officer Tim Dougherty, and Facilities Operations Manager Robert Cisiewicz played key roles in moving the project forward.
The project was designed by Towers|Golde Landscape Architects of New Haven.
Sound Construction was the main contractor, and Austin Ganim Landscape Design of Fairfield designed and planted the wildflower gardens.
“It was a team effort with a lot of 5 people involved,” Porcelli says.
SILVER LININGS MAGAZINE | ISSUE FIVE | 2022