GRAND RAPIDS, MI — Construction is slated to begin this week on the Doug Meijer Innovation Building, an $85 million medical research building next door to Michigan State University’s Grand Rapids Research Center in downtown Grand Rapids.

The project is a public-private partnership between Michigan State University, Grand Rapids-based Rockford Construction, Chicago-based Walsh Construction and Chicago-based Murphy Development Group.

The building will house clients focused on bringing to market life science discoveries in the fields of cancer research, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, artificial intelligence and medical device development.

“This project, I think, really will help lay the foundation for valuable health care services and vital research,” MSU President Samuel Stanley said Monday, speaking during a ceremonial groundbreaking for the new building.

“It offers the promise of earlier detection of cancer, more effective and less invasive treatments, the elimination of unnecessary procedures, the reduction of treatment side effects and more time in remission. All the things which are vital in cancer treatment and care.”

Thus far, three tenants — MSU’s College of Human Medicine, Spectrum Health and BAMF Health, a Grand Rapids-based biotechnology company — have leased space in what will be a six-story, 250,000-square-foot building.

Norman Beauchamp, MSU’s executive vice president for health sciences, said the building could accommodate up to six additional tenants.

Because talks are ongoing, Beauchamp said he could not provide names of other potential tenants. But he added that they could include “an international medical imaging company,” an Israel company focused on “big data,” and an engineering company from the West Michigan region.

Monday’s ceremonial groundbreaking featured remarks from Doug Meijer, who — along with the Meijer Foundation — donated $19.5 million to the public-private partnership behind the project. Doug Meijer is the grandson of Hendrik Meijer, who founded the Meijer Supercenter chain.

He discussed how he was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer eight years ago, and that he was unable to find an effective treatment until he connected with a doctor in Germany who used a method known as Theranostics.

“It just doesn’t make sense that in this day and age we have to travel overseas to get this treatment and this care,” said Meijer, who added that Theranostics will be one area of focus at the new medical research building.

Theranostics combines the terms therapeutic and diagnostics. It is used to describe the combination of using one radioactive drug to identify and diagnose as well as a second radioactive drug to deliver therapy to treat the main tumor and any metastatic tumors.

The new building will expand MSU’s footprint on the Medical Mile.

In 2017, the university opened the Grand Rapids Research Center at the northeast corner of Michigan Street NW and Monroe Avenue. The researchers and students based at the building are focused on finding cures for cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.

And in 2010, MSU opened the Secchia Center. The $90 million building at 15 Michigan St. NE serves as the headquarters of the university’s College of Human Medicine.

The new medical research building is expected to open in October 2021, said Mike VanGessel, founder and CEO of Rockford Construction. A 600-space parking garage, located adjacent to the new building, is also expected to be completed by then.

VanGessel said the project is “locally born but really getting national attention.” He said that bringing the Medical Mile to the “next level” requires getting “more people to know what we’re doing, the investment that so many have made.”

“I think this is the project that’s going to do it,” VanGessel said.

Health Innovation Partners is leasing from MSU the land where the new medical building is being constructed.

A copy of the lease, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, shows Health Innovation Partners included a provision in its lease where five entities would be deemed to be “credit tenants” and offered a lower rental amount should they chose to lease space in the building.

Those entities — Siemens AG, Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, Philips, Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital and Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services — have not at this time leased space in the building, VanGessel said.

-This article has been corrected to show that Hendrik Meijer is the founder of Meijer