Huntington, New York is centrally located on Long Island’s Gold Coast and is home to residents who value impeccable quality of service, especially as they prioritize the health and wellness of their pets. As such, providing this sophisticated community with specialized services is a recipe for success. Here, Alan Coren, DVM personalizes convenience, boasts hospitality, and inspires client confidence at Gold Coast Center for Veterinary Care. Already successful with a single practice on a busy thoroughfare in Huntington – the Veterinary Economics’ 1998 Merit Award winner West Hills Animal Hospital and Emergency Center – Dr. Coren built a specialty referral practice on an adjacent lot to support it and serve the region.

Though a separate building, Gold Coast’s curb appeal needed to complement the neighboring practice as part of a campus of veterinary care. The steel framing, stucco, and glass design elements of the exterior give the facility this notable appearance. As clients and patients enter the 5,783 square-foot hospital through the northwest tower, they are greeted with warm and soothing colors, an elevated simulated wood-grain ceiling and clerestory windows, and attractive light fixtures. Incorporating such stylish and memorable brand-oriented finishes and features builds a sense of community and conveys its pride. Separate entry and exit vestibules, an open reception desk that increases accessibility for the staff, and clustered client seating all promote efficiency and comfort for facility users. Easy-to-clean porcelain tile flooring is found here through to the veterinary medical areas, which also feature tile wainscoting and quartz countertops. These materials present similar durability and maintenance advantages, making for adept preparation between clients and long-term financial benefits. All in all, the hospital’s design reflects Dr. Coren’s approach to veterinary care: elegant, progressive, and bold while welcoming and friendly.

Gold Coast provides for the future of animal care through vigorously marketed specialized medical services, including cardiology, dentistry, dermatology, internal medicine, neurology, oncology, ophthalmology, orthopedics, rehabilitation, and surgery. In this way, the facility was carefully configured to maximize the benefits of adjacency to the existing general/emergency practice at West Hills. A large proportion of the hospital’s floor plan accommodates waiting and treatment areas as well as eight rapid-service exam rooms. This was possible within a relatively small footprint because many of the required support functions, such as hospital wards and CT/MRI diagnostics, are available next door. ICU holding consists of two areas that are enclosed in glass to reduce noise and a third that is mobile. A lab and pharmacy buffer between treatment and outpatient areas. Specialty procedure rooms, two surgery rooms, and specialist doctor’s offices complete the layout.

Further design considerations for Gold Coast pertained to town-required LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. Through the selection of HVAC units and LED lighting that result in less energy consumption, the use of local and recycled building materials, and even wildflowers in the landscaping to provide for better erosion control, the building received LEED certification to regional acclaim. Moreover, such initiatives contribute to a healthier environment for patients, clients, and staff. Construction of the hospital facility was completed in November of 2016, and, like its partner hospital, the practice went on to receive a Merit Award in dvm360’s 2018 Hospital Design Competition.