Phased Construction on Occupied Santa Fe Campuses and Buildings

Some of the most important buildings in Santa Fe never close. A hospital cannot send its patients elsewhere for a season, a state office cannot stop serving the public, and a college cannot postpone a semester because the contractor needs another wing. When these owners build, they ask us to work around them, and we have built a practice around doing so with as little disturbance as possible.

Phased construction means dividing a project into stages that the owner can occupy, with each stage complete enough to function before the next begins. It means barriers that keep dust and noise on the work side, temporary corridors and exits that stay clear, utility outages that last only as long as they must, and crews who know that the person in the next room may be a patient, a legislator or a student.

Patience and courtesy are not decoration in this work. They are what allow an owner to keep operating, and they are what keep a project from becoming a source of complaint.

The kinds of buildings that cannot close

State government is the largest employer in Santa Fe, with roughly 15,000 jobs, followed by education and health services at 11,600. Those numbers describe an economy in which public agencies, hospitals and campuses are occupied nearly every day of the year. The regional medical center completed a $44 million project in 2018 that added all-private patient rooms, the kind of improvement that raises questions about how the building functions while it is being altered.

Each owner type has its own priorities. A hospital cares about infection control and air pressure; an office cares about noise and meetings; a college cares about class schedules and safe walking routes. We begin by learning those priorities from the people who use the building, then write them into the phasing plan so that every subcontractor reads the same set of rules. We put those questions first when we meet healthcare systems and education institutions.

Dust, noise, egress and life safety

The first line of defense is the barrier. We build full-height dust partitions, sealed at the floor and ceiling, with negative air in areas that need it, and we protect finished surfaces and mechanical systems from construction debris. Work that creates heavy noise or vibration is scheduled for hours the owner approves, and demolition near sensitive spaces is sequenced to give advance notice.

Life safety is non-negotiable. Egress paths, exit signs, fire alarm coverage and sprinkler protection remain in service, and when one must be interrupted, a temporary measure and a fire watch are arranged beforehand. We coordinate with the owner's facilities and safety staff, and we meet with them regularly so that changes in the plan are not discovered on the floor. Where the work involves removal of older finishes, the demolition crews follow abatement protocols before any cutting begins.

Sequencing, swing space and utility shutdowns

A phasing plan starts with a drawing of the building showing which areas are occupied at each stage, where the barriers go and how people and materials move. We look for swing space, a room or wing that can be completed first so that the next area's occupants have somewhere to go. It is the single most useful tool in occupied construction, and it often sets the order of the whole job.

Utility shutdowns are planned like surgical procedures. We list the system, the area affected, the duration, the backup and the person who authorizes it, and we do not proceed until the owner agrees in writing. Work that can be prefabricated or staged ahead of the outage is completed beforehand, so the shutdown is as short as possible. When a project requires systems upgrades, our work on commissioning and closeout follows each phase, not just the last one.

Hospitals, offices, schools and public buildings

A hospital demands infection control risk assessment, careful coordination with clinical staff and attention to air pressure relationships. A public office building may need the lobby open to visitors and the security screening undisturbed. A college campus, such as the 366-acre Santa Fe Community College campus southwest of the city center with its Higher Education Center that opened in January 2015, has teaching schedules that dictate the work calendar.

The Capitol's 1992 renovation, which combined committee room expansion, asbestos abatement and mechanical, electrical and accessibility improvements in one program, shows how much a public building may ask for in a single effort. We bring the same discipline to smaller buildings, where a single remodeled suite or a corridor of new offices can be just as disruptive to a tenant as a large wing.

Working evenings, weekends and between sessions

Occupied work often moves to nights and weekends, but the cost of premium time should be weighed against the cost of disruption. We price both approaches and let the owner decide, sometimes recommending a mix: quiet work during the day and noisy work after hours. Public buildings may have fixed periods of heavy use, and a schedule that pauses during those periods is often better than one that fights them.

We keep a short weekly look-ahead posted for the owner's staff, naming what will be loud, what will be closed and what will be affected. A neighbor who knows the plan is a neighbor who is patient. Our tenant improvement work follows the same rhythm.

Describe the building as it works today

Tell us who is in the building, when they are there and what cannot be interrupted, and we will propose a phasing approach. A conversation with your facilities staff is often the best first step.

Questions Owners Ask

Can a hospital stay open during renovation?

Yes, with planning. Barriers, negative air, infection control measures and careful routing of people and materials allow most hospital renovation to proceed in stages. The hospital's infection control team sets the rules, and we build to them and coordinate daily with clinical staff.

How do you control dust and noise?

With sealed partitions, negative air machines, protected return air paths, walk-off mats and scheduled quiet hours. We monitor continuously and stop work if a measure fails. Prevention is much cheaper than cleanup.

What does phasing add to the cost and schedule?

It adds mobilization, temporary protection, after-hours labor and a longer overall duration, in exchange for allowing the owner to keep operating. The right balance depends on what the interruption would cost. We price both continuous and phased approaches when asked.

How are utility outages handled?

Each outage is planned in writing, scheduled with the owner and limited to the shortest practical duration. We prepare materials and tie-ins ahead of time, notify affected occupants and have a recovery plan if work runs long.

What happens if we discover hazardous materials?

Work in the affected area stops, the area is isolated and the owner is notified. A qualified abatement contractor assesses and removes the material under applicable rules, and work resumes after clearance. Surveys before construction reduce the chance of surprises.