Seen and Unseen: Designing for Sensitivity at the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office

Architecture has the rare power to both reveal and conceal. It holds space for what must be seen and protects what should not. Few projects embody that balance more clearly than the new Jefferson County Coroner’s Office in Birmingham, Alabama.

For Poole & Company Architects, the project brought together a mix of opposites: operational rigor and human sensitivity, visibility and discretion, security and calm. The team set out to create a complete architectural solution that united technical precision with emotional understanding, producing a facility that functions efficiently while offering dignity and relief to everyone who enters.

A Building Rooted in Context

Set against a natural backdrop of forest and wetlands near Lakeshore Drive, the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office sits quietly within its environment. It is not a building that demands attention. It is one that invites stillness and respect.

“Functionality and operations drive every decision in a building like this,” says Kyle D’Agostino, Principal at Poole & Company Architects. “But so does context. The site had this incredible existing woodland and wetland area. Even though it’s near a major thoroughfare, it felt removed and peaceful. We wanted the building to belong there, not disrupt it.”

That sensitivity to place guided the team toward a design principle D’Agostino calls camouflage through empathy.

Camouflage Through Empathy

The building’s exterior is wrapped in vertical metal panels inspired by the surrounding trees. Early in the design process, an intern was asked to visit the site and photograph the trunks of existing trees, capturing their subtle hues and textures. From those images, the team mapped a color palette that informed the building’s cladding system.

“When you look at the building from a distance, it blends into the landscape,” D’Agostino explains. “That was intentional. Although this is a public facility, it’s not one that seeks visibility. Its purpose is service, not spectacle.”

The approach extended beyond the building envelope to the site itself. A bridge crosses the wetlands from the visitor parking area, guiding guests toward the entrance in a gradual, contemplative sequence. The landscape opens and closes intentionally, directing movement and framing views. Visitors intuitively understand where to go without relying on excessive signage.

“Wayfinding doesn’t have to shout,” says D’Agostino. “We designed it so the architecture and landscape communicate it naturally.”

Designing for Those Who Serve

Inside, the design turns its focus to the people who work there every day. Medical examiners, investigators, and staff perform highly technical and emotionally demanding work. The architecture had to support both precision and compassion.

“These are professionals doing extremely stressful work,” D’Agostino says. “We needed to create an environment where they could perform complex technical tasks but also have places to decompress and reconnect with a sense of calm.”

The building is organized to clearly separate clinical, operational, and administrative zones while maintaining visual connections to nature wherever possible. Corners dissolve into glass, allowing natural light and views of the forest to enter the workspace. The result is a rhythm of openness and privacy that supports different kinds of focus throughout the day.

Even the orientation of work areas and circulation paths was considered with well-being in mind. Access to natural light, balanced acoustics, and clear wayfinding reduce cognitive strain. Every design decision serves a larger emotional purpose: to support those who serve others in difficult moments.

Architecture as Quiet Service

Designing a coroner’s facility is unlike any other building type. The architecture must accommodate complex procedures and strict security requirements, yet it also has to convey a sense of humanity.

“It’s tricky,” says D’Agostino. “This is a place that has to be seen and unseen. We wanted it to feel safe, respectful, and dignified for the professionals who work there and for the public who may visit under difficult circumstances.”

That mindset reflects Poole & Company’s larger design philosophy. The firm approaches architecture as an act of empathy. Understanding the emotional and operational realities of the people who will occupy a space is the foundation for every design decision.

“We ask questions like, what does it feel like to walk into this building on the worst day of your life? How can the experience of arrival ease that burden, even slightly?” says D’Agostino. “Those questions shape everything from how light enters a space to how the building meets the ground.”

The team intentionally crafted transparency where reassurance was needed, concealment where privacy was required, and spatial rhythm where movement could feel natural. The goal was not just to meet functional requirements but to quietly restore calm in moments of stress.

Collaboration and Expertise

Poole & Company has designed a wide range of complex facilities, but as D’Agostino notes, “You don’t often get to design a coroner’s office. To do it well, you have to be curious, collaborative, and humble enough to know what you don’t know.”

To address the technical and regulatory intricacies of this building type, the firm partnered with a specialized consultant who had designed dozens of coroner’s facilities nationwide. Their expertise informed the detailed planning, code compliance, and operational sequencing that define the project’s success.

“That’s one of the unique strengths of our practice,” D’Agostino says. “We bring in subject matter experts and work closely with them to make sure we don’t miss the nuances. We rely on that collaboration to elevate the entire design.”

Through this process, Poole & Company was able to integrate specialized knowledge into a cohesive architectural expression that remains rooted in local context and human experience.

The Emotional Intelligence of Design

Perhaps the most powerful lesson from this project is that architecture’s impact is not always visible. Sometimes its success lies in what occupants do not feel: confusion, anxiety, or fatigue.

“To design this kind of building, you almost have to step into the role of the people who will use it,” says D’Agostino. “Like an actor preparing for a role, you try to inhabit their world for a moment. When you do that, you begin to design not just for function, but for feeling.”

That ability to merge technical precision with emotional intelligence defines Poole & Company’s work across all project types. Whether designing healthcare environments, civic spaces, or educational facilities, the firm consistently seeks to understand the people behind the program and to design environments that serve them with dignity.

A Lasting Reflection

The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office is, in many ways, a study in restraint. It is a public building designed to remain discreet, a technical facility that feels humane, and a space that balances the needs of privacy with the comfort of openness.

Its success is measured not by how loudly it announces itself, but by how quietly it serves.

For Poole & Company Architects, that is the essence of design: creating spaces that meet the highest technical standards while nurturing the human spirit.