Colorado Real Estate Journal - September 16, 2015
The first step in Denver Health’s five-year master facilities plan designed to improve patient access on the main campus is underway. Denver Health has started demolition on the vacant building at the corner of West Sixth Avenue and Broadway in Denver where a six-story, 180,000-square-foot support services building will be constructed, in addition to three levels of parking and 5,700 sf of ground-level retail space. The building at 601 Broadway will house hospital administration, physician offices and the office of Denver’s medical examiner, all of which will relocate from their current home at 660 Bannock St. once the support services building is complete, anticipated to be in spring 2017. Following the move, 660 Bannock will be razed for development of the Ambulatory Care Center, a single, centralized location for all of the outpatient services Denver Health offers versus the current configuration, which has outpatient clinics located in several buildings on campus. The ACC building’s location was chosen not only for its easy access to both Sixth Avenue and Speer Boulevard but also as it has a parking garage behind it and is across the street from the main hospital, according to Denver Health. “Building the Ambulatory Care Center will give Denver Health the unique opportunity to re-imagine the patient experience and the way we deliver care,” said Art Gonzalez, chief executive officer at Denver Health. “Patient needs and the principles of innovation, research and cost-effective care will be incorporated at every level of this design.” Rental income from the 601 Broadway building will help offset the cost of its construction. In addition, a private drive will connect Broadway to Acoma Street along the north edge of the building, representing the first time patients, visitors and staff can access the campus directly from Broadway. While construction is ongoing at 601 Broadway, design and planning will be completed for the ACC. The new outpatient building is scheduled to open in early 2019. Trammell Crow is the master developer for the Broadway project, which was designed by Davis Partnership and is being constructed by Hensel Phelps Construction Co. Dorit Makovsky Fisher of Shames Makovsky is marketing the retail portion of the property, which is targeted to provide convenience, service-focused retail amenities for employees and visitors to Denver Health.