SAC Health Brier Campus Opens in San Bernardino

Adaptive reuse project delivers a flagship health campus to expand access, advance equity and promote healing in San Bernardino

San Bernardino, Calif. — Perkins&Will, in partnership with BNBuilders, is proud to announce the grand opening of SAC Health Brier Campus, a 280,000-square-foot former banking call center that now serves as a state-of-the-art outpatient facility. Designated as SAC Health’s flagship location in the Inland Empire, the Brier Campus provides comprehensive primary care, specialty services and a community resource center for underserved populations.

Ranked among America’s unhealthiest cities, San Bernardino has long endured serious health disparities due in part to unemployment and high rates of poverty. With a mission to expand access to high-quality, patient-centered care, SAC Health developed the Brier Campus facility with Perkins&Will and BNBuilders to accommodate 300,000 patient visits in the next five years.

The SAC Health Brier Campus design-build team leveraged modular design principles – including flexible clinic layouts, streamlined workflows and natural, tactile finishes – to accelerate construction while ensuring adaptability for future growth. The existing building’s open floor plan and structural grid allowed for creative layout solutions, while innovative flooring techniques resolved structural challenges without adding weight or compromising budget. These design strategies allowed the team to accelerate construction, ensure adaptability for future growth and deliver a dignified, community-centered space on time and under budget.

The team’s design approach prioritized:

• Standardization and Flexibility: Modular clinic units that can scale up or down to meet evolving community needs.
• Community-Centered Design: Drawing inspiration from local indigenous traditions and the United States’ only official Blue Zone, the campus incorporates biophilic elements, natural materials and culturally responsive spaces to promote healing and well-being.
• Sustainability and Resource Preservation: Reuse of the existing building envelope and systems minimized landfill and carbon emissions, reflecting a commitment to environmentally responsible adaptive reuse.

Campus Highlights Include:

• 158,000 square feet of clinical, dental, behavioral health and specialty care services
• 88,000 square feet of administrative and support spaces
• 30,000-square-foot express care clinic for urgent community needs

• 88,000 square feet for nonclinical staff support service

• 4,000 square feet for a Community Resource Center

• Consolidated administrative and support services with patient-centered design elements – daylighting, mountain views, protective seating nooks, and natural textures – for enhanced comfort and efficiency 

“Transforming a former call center into today’s SAC Health Brier Campus was an incredible opportunity to demonstrate how thoughtful design can directly impact community health,” said Jeffrey Dreesman, principal and director of medical planning at Perkins&Will. “Our team focused on creating a flexible, patient-centered environment that not only meets the immediate needs of San Bernardino’s residents but can evolve to serve the community for decades to come. By combining adaptive reuse, modular design and biophilic principles, we aimed to deliver a facility that supports healing, accessibility and well-being for all who enter.”

The opening of SAC Health Brier Campus significantly enhances access to healthcare in San Bernardino, adding more than 200 healthcare and support positions to the local workforce. 

To learn more about the new campus, visit the campus website.

About SAC Health

SAC Health is the largest specialty-based and teaching Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in the United States. It provides comprehensive services to underserved areas and populations including Medi-Cal and Medicare patients and is accredited by AAAHC (Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care). SAC Health provides whole-person, faith-based care to patients across five counties in Southern California, covering 43,000 square miles and nearly a quarter of California’s total area. It has 11 clinics in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, with services in family medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, dentistry, behavioral health, and over 40 other medical and surgical specialties. More information about SAC Health is available online at sachealth.org.

About Perkins&Will

Perkins&Will, an interdisciplinary, research-based architecture and design firm, was founded in 1935 on the belief that design has the power to transform lives. The firm is committed to creating a better, beautiful, more equitable world through Living Design, an approach that integrates environmental, social, and design considerations to advance ecological health and well-being. Architizer named Perkins&Will the world’s “Best Sustainable Firm” in 2023, and Metropolis named it “Firm of the Year” in 2022 for its industry leadership in advancing climate action and social justice. Fast Company named Perkins&Will one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies in Architecture three times, and in 2021, it added the firm to its list of Brands That Matter—making Perkins&Will the first architecture practice in the world to earn the distinction.

With an international team of more than 2,500 professionals, Perkins&Will has 30 studios worldwide, providing integrated services in architecture, interior design, branded environments, urban design, and landscape architecture. Partners include Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects; Portland; Nelson\Nygaard; and Pierre-Yves Rochon (PYR). For more information, visitwww.perkinswill.com