ST. LOUIS—The University of Missouri-St. Louis marked the debut of its new Patient Care Center for the College of Optometry with a grand opening event, Friday, Nov. 4. The event included tours and demonstrations of technology, celebratory remarks and a toast, according to a post on the school’s website.

St. Louis-based engineering firm HOK designed the 48,000-square-foot building, which provides room for clinical education and research for the college as well as eyecare for the community. The new facility sits next to the UMSL South MetroLink station, and it replaces the University Eye Center at UMSL’s Marillac Hall, a building designed as a convent, according to the HOK website.

The new Patient Care Center, which began seeing patients in mid-September, features a two-story atrium that has a signature "eye" window, which uses dichroic glass that changes color depending on light, according to a report by the St. Louis Business Journal.

The facility also has four specific service areas: adult eyecare, pediatric eyecare, contact lens eyecare and primary healthcare. About 13,000-square feet of center space is set aside for future community partnership opportunities.

“Beyond its striking architecture and beauty, the Patient Care Center has greatly improved the operations of the eyecare center,” said Larry Davis, dean of the College of Optometry. “In the short time we’ve occupied the building, we’ve recognized how the floor plan encourages collaboration among faculty across a variety of specialty areas. Patients will appreciate the logical, efficient flow as they move through the facility.”