Aug 26, 2025 _ news

Ronald McDonald House Dayton Cuts Ribbon on New Home

While the phasing of this new construction project has allowed staff, volunteers, and families to occupy their new home since February, Ronald McDonald House Charities Dayton has now officially cut the ribbon on the entire house, which will triple their capacity to keep pediatric hospital patients, and their families, close.

More than a place to sleep, Ronald McDonald House Dayton was designed to support family well-being. While the project includes 42 right-sized rooms on two floors, the building includes plenty of shared space. A large communal dining room allows families to come together for meals and find support in their shared experiences. The central stair between floors also allows families to access respite space throughout the house. This is where people can relax, reflect, or recharge as needed after a long day in the hospital with a sick child.

The new house is entirely powered by electricity, with a predicted Energy Use Intensity (pEUI) that is 56% below baseline. Energy Use Intensity is like a building’s miles per gallon. Learn more about how we use this data in design here. Designed using passive house principles, the new house uses structural insulated sheathing and reinforced barriers to prevent heating/cooling loss and drafts. Exterior roof and wall insulation helped ensure the right-sizing of HVAC systems—powerful enough to work for the building without being too big. This helped keep first costs down for the client (by not having an oversized system) while also being mindful of their ongoing operational costs.

On the exterior, the building is clad with locally made terracotta tiles that evoke shingles and help reinforce the hominess of the house. Its vestibule softly glows at night, creating a sense of a beacon, lighting the way to hope and healing. “When people approach the entry to Ronald McDonald House Dayton, they can see the vestibule and its atrium and hopefully feel a sense of welcome,” says Chas Wiederhold, a member of the GBBN design team who worked on the project. “Together with the open gable roof, the windows, and playful use of color, the overall design of the house was intended to feel approachable and bridge the context of a residential neighborhood with a large institution—Dayton Children’s Hospital—nearby.”

Read our full case study here.

Read about our work with Ronald McDonald House Cincinnati here.

Read more about our non-profit projects here.

Learn more about our passive house expertise here.