Officials from McLaren Health Care and Michigan State University today held a ceremonial groundbreaking at University Corporate Research Park, the next step in building a new $450 million health care campus adjacent to the university in South Lansing. The event marked the beginning of construction on the acute care hospital portion of the project. Design and construction on the campus’s medical services building and cancer center will begin within the next year.

“Michigan deserves world-class health care. This partnership with Michigan State University, which builds upon decades of close cooperation between McLaren and MSU, is an important step toward that goal,” said Phil Incarnati, president and CEO, McLaren Health Care. “Building this facility in such close proximity to MSU will benefit patients and researchers looking for the best health outcomes possible.”

The new health care campus will be developed on land purchased from the MSU Foundation in its University Corporate Research Park, located between Collins Road and US 127. The campus will house a 240-bed state-of-the-art hospital, cancer center, medical services building, and other facilities to support health care delivery, educational opportunities, and medical research.

When fully complete, this comprehensive health care campus will be home to more than 1,000 physicians, researchers, educators and other members of the academic and medical team. The current estimated timeline to open the facilities is early 2022.

MSU Interim President John M. Engler noted the long and close relationship between MSU and McLaren, which has aided in training of physicians and nurses around the state. “We believe this new facility will help us recruit top physicians and researchers to our region by giving them the best tools, data, and settings possible to develop new life-changing therapies and treatments,” Interim President Engler said.

Groundbreaking attendance included top Lansing region health, education, and political leaders, all focused on how the new facility will lead to better health outcomes, additional jobs, and new opportunities for Mid-Michigan.

“This is another milestone in this important project that will ensure the Greater Lansing region will have access to the finest in health care and health research,” said Kirk Ray, president and CEO of McLaren Greater Lansing. “With the help of the entire community, from our patients and their families to the extraordinary researchers at Michigan State University, we are reinventing health care and how it is delivered. Our goal is to provide such outstanding health care services that no one need seek treatment outside of our region.”

The University Corporate Research Park offered an ideal location for McLaren’s investment. Situated at the crossroads of South Lansing and Michigan State University, the property will benefit the City of Lansing, Lansing Township, the City of East Lansing, the MSU Foundation, Michigan State University, and the entire region. University Corporate Research Parks serve the communities in which they reside in unexpected ways, linking thinkers, innovators, and researchers to the marketplace of ideas.

“This collaboration between Michigan State University and McLaren demonstrates how Research Parks continue to serve the common good in uncommon ways,” said David Washburn, executive director for the Michigan State University Foundation. “Today we celebrate a critical milestone in our region’s ongoing growth. We are proud to be part of the creation of dynamic spaces and building critical relationships that generate value for our community.”

An estimated 2,500 construction jobs will be created in the development of the health care campus. McLaren expects to add an additional 80 employees to its current workforce of more than 2,000 employees when the campus opens.

McLaren has engaged some of the nation’s top construction and construction worker organizations to design and build the acute care hospital. Owner’s representative services are provided by the Kramer Management Group, Barton Malow/Christman Joint Venture is the construction manager, Gresham Smith and Harley Ellis Devereaux (HED) are the architects, Pace Howe Design is providing interior design services, C2AE is providing off-site civil consulting, PEA is the on-site civil engineer, IMEG is the technology consulting and medical equipment planner, Ghafari is providing scheduling consulting, Limbach Mechanical is the mechanical design assist, and Shaw Electric is the electrical design assist.

More information about the project can be found at www.mclaren.org/redesignhealthcare.