MGH Ragon Building | 55 Fruit Street | West End

[12345]

Massachusetts General Hospital, the busiest medical center in the state, plans to spend more than $1 billion to build a large new addition to its crowded campus to keep up with the demand for high-end medical care and compete for patients from around the globe.

The project would reshape a busy stretch of downtown Boston between Government Center and the Longfellow Bridge. It includes two connected 12-story towers on Cambridge Street, with hundreds of private patient rooms, a heart center, a cancer center, operating rooms, and other clinical areas. Mass. General expects to be able to treat at least 100 to 200 additional patients at a time once the building is complete.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/busines...oZ88IHFTdM/amp.html?__twitter_impression=true

 

[FK4]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

From MGH itself - note this is actually going to be a proposal for two new buildings, not one:

About the New Building: Plans call for a 12-story structure comprising about 1 million gross square feet for both inpatient and outpatient clinical care. The top six floors will consist of inpatient units with approximately 450 single-bed patient rooms housed in two parallel towers. Single-bed rooms – the national standard of care for new hospital construction – offer privacy, space for families, and a quiet and calm environment to foster recovery and healing. The MGH currently has only 38 percent of its beds in single rooms, far less than most other hospitals in Boston and lagging well behind national peer institutions. Beyond inpatient beds, the building will include operating/interventional rooms, a procedural suite, imaging facilities, exam rooms and infusion centers. The new facility will also house dietary, pharmacy and clinical support services and a café. Retail space will be included at ground level along Cambridge Street.

Below the 12-story structure will be six levels of underground parking with more than 1,000 spaces, mostly replacing the spaces from the Parkman Garage. The below-grade levels will also feature space for clinical support services. Two mechanical floors – one in the middle and one on the roof – will accommodate utilities, services and technology to monitor and control the facility’s systems.

Programs: Looking at factors such as current demand and areas most likely to grow in the future, we have made preliminary plans for cancer and heart to be the major centers of excellence in the new facility. Designated inpatient beds for thoracic surgery, vascular surgery and general medicine may also be incorporated within the structure. Moving several large services to the new facility will free up space in existing buildings, creating an opportunity to expand programs to address specific needs, such as increasing the number of behavioral health inpatient beds for adults, creating a pediatric behavioral health inpatient unit, and expanding the substance use disorder program.

Funding: We are mindful that adding a significant building to our campus may raise questions about whether the costs of the facility will increase the overall cost of health care. The MGH will continue to play a key leadership role in care management programs to meet the state’s objectives for limiting cost growth. In addition, we are confident that philanthropy will be a significant source of funding for the project. In fact, the MGH Development Office is already having conversations with donors who may be interested in supporting our plans for the hospital's future.

A New Utility Building: Parallel with the construction of the clinical building, the MGH is also planning to build a new campus services facility on Blossom Street. This seven-story structure, which would replace the service building currently on the proposed Blossom Street site, would allow us to modernize our systems, making them more efficient and sustainable, and decrease the vulnerability of our utilities and services.

Timeline: The multi-step regulatory approval process will take place throughout the next 18 months. We are hopeful that we can begin construction sometime in 2020. If all goes according to plan, the underground garage and the first phase of the building – the Blossom Street side – could be completed in 2023, with the second phase of construction – the Parkman Garage side – completed by late 2026.

 

[Equilibria]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

The article says that a LOI will be sent to the BPDA tomorrow.

For now, recommend a name change for the thread to: "MGH Expansion | 275 Cambridge Street | West End". According to the render, the MGH Professional Office Building would not be retained (which is a little sad, since I like that building).

Also, it would be great if BPDA could get MGH to provision for an MBTA headhouse to be integrated here for when the Red/Blue connector happens. Would be a nice show of faith by the major employer.

 

[odurandina]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

Not bad sinking that garage when you can print money.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/2...d6be7f767e5fe8!8m2!3d42.3613373!4d-71.0682086

only 12 floors each? The far section on Parkman is set back a ways from
Beacon Hill.

 

[DZH22]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

According to the render, the MGH Professional Office Building would not be retained (which is a little sad, since I like that building).

Are we sure about this? It looks like they are building this on the next plot over, so why would they need to get rid of this building?

It does look like they might be demo'ing the 2 brick buildings here though... (unless they are just hidden from view)

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.362...4!1sQGyK7PZMwhYWcZoQlfulLA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

 

[stefal]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

only 12 floors each? The closer building in the render is set back quite a ways
from Beacon Hill.

Is this another cry for more height? You'll never get a tall hospital. Ever. It doesn't make sense in any way shape or form. Staff need to be able to move quickly and efficiently. That means no 40 story hospital buildings.

Are we sure about this? It looks like they are building this on the next plot over, so why would they need to get rid of this building?

It does look like they might be demo'ing the 2 brick buildings here though... (unless they are just hidden from view)

The next plot over that you mention is phase 1. Phase 2 includes the demolition of the MGH Professional Office Building.



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Timeline: The multi-step regulatory approval process will take place throughout the next 18 months.

I know we've been over this elsewhere before, but an 18 month long approval process is ridiculous.

 

[DZH22]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

I know we've been over this elsewhere before, but an 18 month long approval process is ridiculous.

Ridiculously short by Boston standards!

 

[odurandina]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

Is this another cry for more height? You'll never get a tall hospital. Ever...

Yup i agree sort of. These buildings need to be planned to forsee future growth. Complicated? Surely. But Hospital campus buildings can get taller with smart designs. A few hospitals in Chicago & NYC have tall buildings.

Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago has a 442' tower.
Northwestern Memorial Hospital includes a 402' tower...
Ellison Bldg Mass General; 342'

Those blocks are humongous. Get it right the first time w/ a better design; 15-18 floors on the far end, facing away from Beacon Hill neighborhood. Maybe you put a few administrative offices in the upper floors with dedicated elevators and egress stairs.

 

[Arlington]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

Let them go tall and have them proffer some funding for the red blue connection in exchange

 

[Gameguy326]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

Let them go tall and have them proffer some funding for the red blue connection in exchange

I'm pretty sure the hospital doesn't WANT to go tall.

 

[stefal]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

I'm pretty sure the hospital doesn't WANT to go tall.

Yes, otherwise they would've gone tall.

Considering they're already pushing that the (currently approximate) cost is worth the investment and providing rebuttals to "expected arguments" that this will increase healthcare costs at MGH, they don't want to/can't go any taller and thereby more expensive.

Going to repeat what many on here say all the time: this isn't SimCity Builder, especially when dealing with something like Mass General. You can look at the Ludner Building to see what MGH and the architect have to consider when designing something for such a complex site and program.

 

[stick n move]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

More west end density = good.

 

[jass]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

Is this another cry for more height? You'll never get a tall hospital. Ever. It doesn't make sense in any way shape or form. Staff need to be able to move quickly and efficiently. That means no 40 story hospital buildings.

Theres a lot going on in a hospital that has nothing to do with "quick and efficient".

Like the billing department.

 

[FK4]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

No, the hospital doesn’t want to go to tall. That’s for a number of reasons, most of which were already articulated by stefal. But most importantly, hospital construction is even more tightly regulated than “normal” construction and you can’t just say you’re going to add x number of beds - there’s multiple regulatory agencies involved in deciding whether or not that’s going to be allowed to take place and more than likely that there isn’t going to be justification (in the eyes of said agencies) for more patient beds than is currently proposed. I’m sure people on this forum could argue all night about the pros and cons of regulation, but one of them is showing a “Determination of Need” and the basic reason as far as i understand it is that unfilled beds actually lead to price inflation, since the facility needs to make up the loss.

Moreover, it’s very unclear where healthcare is going right now and despite what you might think about titans like Partners, they need to be very cautious about next moves: the nature of care, care delivery and reimbursement/payment structures are without question going to change significantly over the next 20 years, and yet, especially given uncertainty as far as regulation and payment goes, nobody can really say what the landscape will be.

Finally, as the Globe reports, this, as is, is already the largest hospital expansion project ever proposed in the state, ever (I guess despite the height it’s still bigger than Ellison/Blake in the 90s, not exactly sure if we are talking about net increase in number of beds or number of square feet). Either way, healthcare construction doesn’t work like free market construction (or, if you like, what goes for it in this state), and building on spec or gambling on distant-future-needs is not a thing.

 

[tangent]

Re: Mass. General Hospital says it plans large addition

Pro... private rooms, modern facilities more beds, looks like every other contemporary medical facility which is fine.

Cons... demolition of the MGH Professional Office Building which gives that corner and street wall more of a Beacon Hill feel and leaves other older less nice MGH buildings and garages untouched.

Hopefully it gives them space to start replacing some if the uglier buildings. Personally I think the White building is ugly and crowds the Bullfinch building courtyard.

 

[Arenacale]

No doubt MGH has detailed projections on their patient load going forward and these buildings and wards are designed to meet that capacity without creating excessive and persistent vacancies.

 

[stellarfun]

I am surprised that someone who is apparently quite familiar with Southern California would be oblivious that new hospital construction is subject to very stringent seismic codes, which all but rule out tall hospital buildings because of the cost of going high and still meeting seismic standards.

The example of California shows how earthquake damage affects legislation. The 1971 San Fernando earthquake was particularly damaging to hospital buildings, most notably the Olive Medical Center, a brand new facility that was damaged so badly that it was eventually demolished. Based on similar experiences with schools, the legislature passed the Hospital Seismic Act (HSSA) in 1972. The intent of the law was both to protect acute care patients and provide post-earthquake medical care. The law was patterned after the Field Act covering in California, specifying the same State review agency, and stipulating design by specially and approved “Structural Engineers.” It covered new buildings only and provided for “Building Safety Board” of industry design professionals and facility experts, appointed by the of Health Services, to advise the State on implementation of requirements. law and regulations included four main considerations:
* Geologic hazard studies for sites
* Structural design forces in excess of those used for “normal” buildings (initially a “K-factor” of; later, an importance factor, I, of 1.5)
* Specific design requirements for nonstructural elements
* Strict review of design and inspection of construction

Surprisingly, only 23 years after the San Fernando earthquake, another damaging event occurred in almost the same spot. In January of 1994, the Northridge earthquake produced very large ground motions in the San Fernando Valley just north of Los Angeles. Just as the San Fernando event, the Northridge earthquake had a profound effect on hospital design in California.

Although there were no failures in hospitals comparable to the Olive View disaster, several hospitals required evacuation as a result of failures of both structural and nonstructural systems.

https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1610-20490-7924/577_ch2.pdf

 

[Equilibria]

I'd rather focus my energy about this project on provisioning for the Blue Line headhouse than on the height. They need to pre-build access tunnels under Cambridge Street in the basement to make that work, I think.

 

[tangent]

I'd rather focus my energy about this project on provisioning for the Blue Line headhouse than on the height. They need to pre-build access tunnels under Cambridge Street in the basement to make that work, I think.

I thought that project was dead, dead and dead or at least in the attic with a bunch of other mothballed projects. The last I see for Blue-Red is a possible pedestrian tunnel between State and Downtown Crossing stations. Granted I haven't been following that thread.

 

[odurandina]

If there is really no hope of the Blue Line ever running to MGH anytime soon,

it's exhibit A evidence of some very ugly thing/s about Boston.