Henry Ford, Michigan State research center to be built for $335 million
The center is designed to accommodate more than 80 principal investigator teams as well as more modern technology.
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The Michigan State University Board of Trustees has approved the construction of a $335 million biomedical research center in Detroit. The seven-story, 335,000-square-foot facility will be owned by Michigan State University and operated jointly as part of a 30-year partnership with Henry Ford Health.
The Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Research Center will be MSU's largest research facility to date, the university said, designed to accommodate more than 80 principal investigator teams and more modern technology.
The center is part of a $3 billion "Future of Health" development with Henry Ford, MSU and the Detroit Pistons that includes a new hospital tower and campus as well as mixed-use/mixed-income residential buildings.
In 2022, Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University achieved recognition as an aligned research organization by the National Institutes of Health. Recently, more than 130 researchers from the hospital system joined the Michigan State University faculty.
WHAT'S THE IMPACT?
The seven-story, 335,000-square-foot research center in Detroit will allow partners to expand research in areas including cancer, neuroscience, immunology and public health, according to MSU.
Bob Riney, president and CEO of Henry Ford Health, said the affiliation will "reshape and reimagine" healthcare in the city.
"We are advancing collaboration and discovery in ways that would not be possible as separate entities," he said. "We are proud to have this research center as the first on our new campus to break ground, as we anticipate continued transformational development to the entire Detroit campus."
The new facility will allow partners to expand research in areas including cancer, neuroscience, immunology and public health, said MSU. There will be an emphasis on addressing health inequities and disparities and the social determinants of health.
Along with researchers from the partner institutions, the Nick Gilbert Neurofibromatosis Research Institute will occupy an entire floor of the building. This will be the first brick-and-mortar institute solely dedicated to neurofibromatosis.
Construction on the research center is expected to begin in mid-May, and it's set to open in 2027.
THE LARGER TREND
A number of big-ticket construction proposals have surfaced in recent months, most notably a $1 billion, decade-long transformation project for Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, spearheaded by Highmark Health, the parent company of Allegheny Health Network.
The funding will go toward a new cardiovascular tower and emergency department, among other upgrades, in an attempt at modernizing the hospital's technology and care delivery capabilities. The 10-year transformation plan will also include multiple other major construction and renovation projects.
Just last week, South Carolina-based McLeod Health said it was eyeing plans to construct a $45 million replacement facility for its Cheraw-based hospital. The facility will be constructed on the current McLeod Health Cheraw property and replace the current building, which was built in 1980.
Jeff Lagasse is editor of Healthcare Finance News.
Email: jlagasse@himss.org
Healthcare Finance News is a HIMSS Media publication.
