Major Medical Expansion Under Way in Murfreesboro
Published Jul 22, 2008
When the new Middle Tennessee Medical Center opens in Murfreesboro’s Gateway development in 2010, it will be four times larger than the original hospital built in 1927.
By then, the $278 million facility will have plenty of neighbors, but it was the first to make a commitment to the ambitious mixed-use development near Interstate 24 and the new Medical Center Parkway.
Earlier this year, contractors moved fill material to the site and foundation drilling began.
“They are tracking right on schedule,” says Gordon Ferguson, MTMC’s president and chief executive officer.
The spot was perfect for a hospital with a long history in Rutherford County but often a low profile.
“A lot of people still don’t know where to find us,” Ferguson says of the current site on North Highland Avenue. “When we looked at population growth and where our patients are coming from, it
was clear this was the best site for us in terms of accessibility and visibility.”
Murfreesboro’s population, now estimated at nearly 100,000, is expected to hit 112,000 by 2012.
Planned for 286 beds, including 32 designated for intensive care and 30 for obstetrics, the new hospital will have “shelled” space to add more beds as the need grows.
The 68.5-acre Gateway campus also will include medical office buildings and a helipad. An outpatient surgery center already is open for business.
Murfreesboro Medical Clinic is also on the move.
A 205,000-square-foot building in Gateway now under construction will include doctors’ offices, outpatient surgery facilities, a lab and radiology services, says Joey Peay, the clinic’s chief executive officer. That’s almost 70 percent larger than the current location on North Highland Avenue. The clinic provides a variety of medical specialty services, treats 21,000 patients a month and employs 400.
The 78,000-square-foot first phase of the new facility is set to open in August 2008.
Story by Pamela Coyle
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