Sarasota architect aims to sustain work in Finland

SARASOTA — Area architect Michael Carlson, a statewide leader in green and sustainable building, has been hired to oversee the design process for a two-story nursing home project in Helsinki, Finland.

The project, Paloheinan Hoivakoti, is an adaptive reuse and conversion of a church parish into a skilled nursing facility on a designated brownfield site, according to a release. Carlson and his Sarasota-based firm, Carlson Studio Architecture, were hired as sustainability consultants for the project, a 34-bed, 18,000-square-foot facility. In that role the firm will guide “the owner, developer, contractor and design team as they identify, analyze, design and integrate green building strategies,” the release states. Paloheinan Hoivakoti is scheduled for completion by June 2015.

“The developer, Ailecon Oy and their team are quite committed to integrating sustainable features to the greatest extent possible,” Carlson says in the release. “It's always a pleasure to work with clients that are already convinced green building design is the right approach.”

Carlson and his architecture firm have won multiple awards and recognition for green and sustainable building in Florida and nationwide. Carlson founded the firm in 1997.