Unveiling the Hospital of the Future in Irvine

The Sun Family Campus Expansion at Hoag Hospital Irvine brings innovation, humanity and hospitality to healthcare like never before.

IRVINE, CALIF. — Sept. 19, 2026 — When you close your eyes and envision a hospital, you likely see a central tower surrounded by a parking lot. That's because it’s been the accepted norm since the 1950s — but modern healthcare is not one-size-fits-all. What would a hospital campus look like if the very idea of it was redesigned from the ground up to create an all-new experience for patients and healthcare professionals alike?

Today, officials cut the ribbon on Hoag Memorial Hospital’s $1.2 billion, 25-acre Sun Family Campus Expansion in Irvine, California, unveiling it to the community it will serve.

In 2019, LPA Design Studios was one of several firms invited to compete in a design competition for the expansion. With an integrated in-house team of healthcare experts and 60+ years of work in Irvine, designers saw an opportunity to provide a wholly unique solution that would stand apart from the field of expected proposals, help promote healing like never before and offer a powerful recruiting tool for the best caregivers around the world.

LPA's winning concept drew inspiration from the city of Irvine’s mid-century masterplan, defined by villages of small-scale buildings connected by parks. At Hoag Irvine, the traditional response of a single hospital tower and parking lot is gone, replaced by a walkable Wellness Village of specialty-driven institutes linked by programmed and landscaped outdoor spaces that play an active role in the healing process. The physical separation of buildings, coupled with the low scale of the campus architecture, ensures that all patient zones have access to natural daylight and views, and that patients benefit from the focused environments that were designed for the individual institutes.

Throughout the campus, the collaborative team looked beyond traditional healthcare design and took cues from amenities and outdoor programs in hospitality, retail, college campuses and other realms the firm practices in to create a singular experience for patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals.

The subsequent 500,000 square feet of new and renovated space features:

—A Women’s Hospital and Outpatient Pavilion with 17 private Level III NICU rooms, 24 birthing suites, built-in tubs for labor support and lush labor gardens for expectant mothers. The outpatient building’s shape was also subtly influenced by the feminine form.

—A Cancer and Digestive Hospital and Outpatient Pavilion with a specialized urgent care for cancer patients (a rarity in the medical world), gastrointestinal labs, and private rooms for infusions.

—A 130,000-square-foot state-of-the-art Surgical Pavilion, including an ICU with patient rooms designed to look out onto a garden — never another patient’s room — to subtly reduce stress. Staff amenities include a private garden, light-filled office spaces and a lounge with nature views — another rarity for healthcare professionals.

—A network of tunnels that connects all the buildings for patient and item transport. The design team also conducted early tests that showed the campus is as efficient as a traditional hospital tower elevator network, while deepening patient privacy.

—Building materials that underscore the campus’ biophilic connection, with travertine stone and warm wood-toned panels offering a natural complement to the landscape elements.

—In addition to drawing inspiration from beyond the healthcare sectors, designers and Hoag professionals further drew from their own experiences — whether that was rectifying not having a place to sit outside a patient’s room, or the fact that there should be a dedicated place to put one’s flowers during a hospital stay. The solution: a flower niche built directly into the wall.

Ultimately, as Dr. Jenn Phan, a gastroenterologist and Medical Director of the Hoag Irvine Advanced Endoscopy Center, put it, “This is one of the most elevated healthcare experiences I have seen. … It is obvious the new campus will be beautiful to look at, but I think even more importantly, it will ease a lot of stress and anxiety for patients and allow them to fully focus on their healing journey.”

Discover more in an exclusive Q&A with Hoag’s executive team here.

About LPA Design Studios

Winner of the 2025 AIA Architecture Firm Award — the industry’s highest honor — LPA is a multi-discipline firm focused on collaboration, inclusion and an integrated process that connects building performance with design excellence. LPA breaks down the walls between different teams to find the best solutions for each project. At every level, the firm has eliminated the traditional barriers to encourage collaboration and the flow of ideas. LPA’s success and influence on the industry reflect a culture that emphasizes diversity, education and promoting young talent. Since LPA was founded in 1965, its mission has been to deliver timeless designs that generate lasting value, enrich the human experience and ensure a better tomorrow. Learn more at lpadesignstudios.com.