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Northern Colorado Landmark
Medical Center of the Rockies Rises
Along I-25 in Loveland
The $130 million Medical Center
of the Rockies will serve patients in northeastern Colorado,
Wyoming and western Nebraska when it opens in early 2007.
Though still nearly two years from completion, the landmark
Medical Center of the Rockies is quickly taking shape in Loveland
after breaking ground in late spring last year.
"The job's progressing very well," said Bob Latas,
vice president of health care for J.E. Dunn Construction,
general contractor for the $130 million project. "The
big milestone [for 2005] is topping out the structure, and
we hope to do that in August."
Crossroads Care
The hospital - owned by Poudre Valley Health System of Fort
Collins and Regional West Medical Center in Scottsbluff, Neb.
- was designed by HLM Design/Heery International Inc. and
sits on a 91-acre campus at the intersection of Interstate
25 and U.S. Highway 34.
The five-story, 570,000-sq-ft facility will house:
- 134 patient beds - all in private, homelike rooms with
guest beds;
- Comprehensive cardiovascular services;
- An emergency department and regional trauma center;
- An obstetrics department and well-baby nursery;
- Pediatrics and medical units; and
- A variety of core services such as intensive and critical
care units and surgical services, including general surgery,
orthopedics and neurology.
The medical center - which will serve patients from northeastern
Colorado, Wyoming and western Nebraska - will also feature
state-of-the-art technology, including robotic-assisted surgical
and electronic health records systems and advanced in-room
telecommunications.
Sustainability
The design is intended to create a healing atmosphere, incorporating
views of Longs Peak, a four-story atrium, rooftop terrace,
courtyards with native plants and water features, walking
trails and a sunlit chapel.
The structure will also use brick, native sandstone and other
materials that have an open, fresh look and feel and plans
call for a smooth, non-reflective metal panel system that
will accent the building's vertical forms.
Sustainability will also play a big role in the hospital,
which is seeking certification through the U.S. Green Building
Council's Leadership in Energy and Environment Design and
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star programs.
"We're going after a LEED Silver certification,"
Latas said. "We're doing a lot of neat things with that
- recycling materials off the job, like woods and metals -
and using a lot more natural-type products."
J.E. Dunn Construction is working on the project in association
with The Neenan Co. of Fort Collins.
"We've got a pretty nice team structure that works really
well," said J.E. Dunn Rocky Mountain Region President
Steve Hamline.
In the Rocky Mountain Region, J.E. Dunn's experience includes
more than $90 million of work for Memorial Hospital of Colorado
Springs. They are also currently completing the UCHSC Barbara
Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes at Fitzsimons.
"[MCR] is an extremely important project, not only to
us and the rest of our project team, but also to the health
care community and our region," Hamline said.
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A Room with a View
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To celebrate the hospital's progress and offer the
community a closer look, the MCR led a workday in December
to begin constructing a viewing platform near the construction
site.
"Bob and I were out there swinging hammers,"
Hamline said. "It was not only us but also a lot
of leaders of the subs and suppliers, the architecture
and engineering team - everyone was out there working
side by side."
The $60,000 platform project was primarily funded through
donations of time and materials from many of the project
team members, subcontractors and material suppliers
- including J.E. Dunn, Neenan, Connell Resources Inc.,
Concrete Foundations and Flatwork, U.S. Engineering,
Sturgeon Electric, RSC Rental Corp. and Tool and Anchor
Supply.
HLM Design/Heery International Inc. donated its services
to design a structure that integrates seamlessly with
the natural surroundings of the site.
The covered platform is constructed with concrete footings
and steel support columns covered by engineered laminated
wood beams and accented with natural stonework and an
open deck with a view of the mountains.
The platform will give the general public a station
for viewing the jobsite, allowing them to be an active
participant in the construction of the new hospital.
The hospital also plans to put an information kiosk
on the platform with ongoing information about the project.
The platform will serve as a picnic shelter once the
hospital is complete in late December 2006 and opened
in early 2007.
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