TOD Corner: Biomedical Building Boom Continues near Central West End Transit Center By Liza Farr

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) refers to the investment that takes place at and around transit infrastructure. TOD is often a catalyst for economic growth – improving access to jobs, housing and amenities, and helping promote active lifestyles and a reduced dependence on automobiles.

The Central West End area in St. Louis is a popular destination for bi-state area residents as well as visitors and it is a job center for the region. The community is home to stores, restaurants, residences, health care facilities and medical schools.

Served by the Central West End Transit Center, which has the highest MetroLink ridership in the system, it is already one of the most popular transit destinations in the region. With additional investments in health care taking shape, the area is becoming even more attractive to employees, patients, students, families and visitors who enjoy a pedestrian-friendly, car-free lifestyle.

Several medical facility construction projects are currently underway in the Central West End. Just north of the Central West End Transit Center, Clayco Realty Group is nearing completion of the BJC/Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) Mid-Campus Center. The 12-story office building includes 40,000 square feet of administrative space for both WUSM and BJC HealthCare. The building will also include a security center, bookstore and cafe, and conference rooms. Single-stream recycling, showers and locker rooms for bike commuters, LED lighting and occupancy sensors all contribute to the building’s anticipated LEED gold certification.

Both Barnes-Jewish Hospital and St. Louis Children’s Hospital have expanding their facilities in the Central West End since mid-2013. These construction projects will consolidate and expand clinical care at the Siteman Cancer Center, as well as other surgical services and programs. It will also consolidate and modernize the Women and Infants Program, and include additional diagnostic and support space.

St. Louis Children’s Hospital is also expanding its neonatal intensive care unit, connecting to Barnes-Jewish Hospital’s labor and delivery facilities. That expansion will also include additional private inpatient beds, diagnostics and outpatient clinic space.

Phase II of the BJC Campus Renewal project will include renovation and construction at the south end of the medical campus. The expansion would focus on facilities for Barnes-Jewish Hospital’s expanding heart and vascular program, neurology and neurosurgery programs, transplant, trauma and critical care, and general medicine programs.

In total, the Campus Renewal project represents a significant investment around the Central West End Transit center, furthering the Central West End’s reputation as a hub for medical innovation and health care services.

“We have direct access to this biomedical community, and our proximity to the Central West End MetroLink Station provides access to the entire St. Louis community. From here, members of our community can get anywhere to find resources.” – Eric Knoll, Ph.D., Associate Vice President For Operations at St. Louis College of Pharmacy

The first phase of campus construction at the St. Louis College of Pharmacy (STLCOP) was completed in August 2015, and included a 213,000-square-foot Academic and Research Building as well as a new library. Phase II, a new seven-story Recreation and Student Center, is nearing completion. The $40 million project includes a 220-bed residence hall, competition and recreation gymnasiums, a 200-meter indoor track, a fitness center, and a dining hall.

The concentration of these projects in this station area is highly valued by these institutions.

“Our location in the Washington University Medical Center is one of the college’s most attractive features for students, faculty and staff,” said Eric Knoll, Ph.D., associate vice president for operations at STLCOP. “We have direct access to this biomedical community, and our proximity to the Central West End MetroLink Station provides access to the entire St. Louis community. From here, members of our community can get anywhere to find resources.”

Great Rivers Greenway is breaking ground on a portion of Chouteau’s Greenway extending from Sarah to Boyle Avenue in the Cortex Innovation Community, just east of the Central West End. The next phases of the Greenway will extend from Boyle Avenue all the way to the Central West End MetroLink Station, connecting these new and existing medical facilities and institutions with the booming innovation and technology community.

These projects aim to create a transit-oriented, pedestrian and bike friendly culture in a part of town where St. Louis has a major concentration of jobs.

Blueprints:

Project: BJC/WUMS Campus Renewal

Phase 1 Construction Manager: ACW Alliance Phase 1: 558,000 square feet, 12-story Barnes-Jewish Hospital expansion with cancer and women and infant services, holding around 237 new private beds, operating and interventional rooms, as well as labor and delivery rooms. 222,000 square feet, 12-story St. Louis Children’s Hospital expansion of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and diagnostic/outpatient space, including 96 new private pediatric beds and 132 new and renovated NICU beds Phase 2: renovation and construction at Barnes-Jewish Hospital south campus, expanding heart and vascular program, neurology and neurosurgery programs, transplant, trauma and critical care, and general medicine programs.

Timeline: Phase 1 construction began in 2014 with planned completion in mid-2017

Project: WUSM/BJCS Mid Campus Center

Developer: Clayco Realty Group 12-story administrative office building with 517,000 square feet of faculty offices, campus administration, research, safety and auxiliary services. It was also include a bookstore and coffee shop.

Timeline: Construction began summer of 2015. Move-ins will run from December 2016 to April 2017, with construction finishing by April.

Project: St. Louis College of Pharmacy Phase II