New Advocate Condell building to focus on outpatient care
Advocate Condell Medical Center intends to build a medical office building on its Libertyville campus focused on ambulatory care.
The $36 million project represents a change for Advocate, mirroring a shift in the health care industry from hospital admissions to less expensive, outpatient style services, said Matt Primack, vice president of business development and clinical institutes.
"What we're seeing in health care now is patients are seeking the ambulatory and outpatient care," he said. The idea is to make the service available to the community rather than relying on in patient stays in a "big box" hospital, he added. Advocate Condell has 281 beds.
The two-story, 44,000-square-foot building would be located adjacent to Milwaukee Avenue and serve as a gateway to the Libertyville campus to the west. It will have capacity for 30 to 32 physicians offices as well as other services, Primack said. The plan includes parking for 106 patients and visitors and 116 spaces for staff.
Scheduled to open in March 2016, the facility is described as being a signature piece for Advocate Health Care.
"Libertyville is the first one," Primack said.
Advocate received approval for the building facades, landscaping and lighting. A planned development designation approved, in 2008, allows for an expedited review process for projects that are deemed by village staff to be consistent with the master plan for the campus.
That is the case with this proposal, and the village's appearance review commission on Oct. 20 examined all exterior aspects of the proposal. The advisory body recommended approval subject to several conditions and the village board this past Tuesday officially approved the plan.
According to the plan, 15 parkway trees will need to be removed but 10 are already in poor condition.
The five trees in good health total 41 inches in diameter and Condell will donate an equitable number of trees to the village to be planted on village property or parkways as one of the conditions of approval.
Condell said 76 trees would be added to the site and that the more formal landscaping of the main campus would be extended east to the parking areas.
The new building will be in a partnership with Advocate Medical Group. Scott Nelson, director of planning and design, told the appearance review commission the new building will be the first step in branding Advocate Health Care across the Chicago area.