Bringing the school downtown will help transform Buffalo into a destination for the best medical research, education and patient care, said Michael E. Cain, MD.
Major Construction Milestone for Downtown Medical School Building
Published March 23, 2016 This content is archived.
story based on news release by ellen goldbaum
UB’s Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences has celebrated a major milestone in the construction of its new downtown medical school building: the signing and raising of one of the structure’s final steel beams.
During the March 22 topping out ceremony, one of the last beams for the building — out of a total of 7,459 beams — was hoisted atop the eight-story structure and put into place at Washington and High streets.
On March 16, students, residents, fellows, faculty and staff joined medical school alumni and donors to pen their signatures on the beam.
“Putting the final beams into place for the new medical school building signals the successful completion of the steel construction phase of what is an extraordinary project, for the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, the university and the city of Buffalo,” said UB President Satish K. Tripathi.
Speakers at the ceremony included Tripathi; New York State Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo; Michael E. Cain, MD, vice president for health sciences and dean, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB; Jeremy M. Jacobs, chairman of Delaware North and chairman of the UB Council; and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown.
Collaboration Signals Dramatic Turning Point in Region
“This milestone would never have been reached if it weren’t for the enthusiastic participation of a very broad range of constituents whose collaboration on this signals a dramatic turning point in the region,” said Cain.
“Literally thousands of individuals throughout this community have been involved in some way in working to realize the vision of bringing the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences downtown,” he said, “from the faculty and staff who contributed design and programmatic input to our elected officials who helped make the case with the Legislature, to the army of workers in the building trades who everyday bring the opening of our new home closer to reality.”
Region’s First Comprehensive Academic Medical Center
“We are building a physical and symbolic landmark on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, establishing the region’s first comprehensive academic medical center, transforming Buffalo into a destination for the best medical research, education and patient care,” emphasized Cain.
The new building will allow UB to expand its medical school class size from 144 to 180 students and add 100 new physician-scientists to the UB faculty, many of whom are recruited from top medical institutions worldwide.
The new location will put superior medical education, clinical care and pioneering research in close proximity.
Once downtown, the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences will facilitate collaboration with physicians and scientists at the UB Clinical and Translational Science Institute, the Kaleida Health Gates Vascular Institute, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital, Buffalo General Medical Center and the Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute.
The 628,000-square-foot facility is scheduled to open in 2017.
Generating Economic Benefits for Buffalo
The downtown facility is expected to generate immediate and long-term economic benefits for Buffalo.
Once open, the medical school building will bring 2,000 UB faculty, staff and students to downtown Buffalo daily, increasing population density in the heart of the city while providing opportunities for retail and housing development, incubators, research parks and other economic development opportunities.
This historic project is providing construction jobs for hundreds and will exceed state goals for minority- and women-owned business participation.
Estimated minority and women business enterprise participation planned for the first phase of the project is 24.7 percent and 20.2 percent planned for the project’s second phase.
Roughly 300 workers are currently employed at the construction site, the largest construction project ever in the university’s 170-year history. That number is expected to grow in the coming months as workers in the trades are employed to finish the building’s interior.
Funded by Private Philanthropy, State, UB Foundation
Construction of the $375 million medical school building is funded by private philanthropy and state support, including funding provided by Gov. Cuomo through the NYSUNY 2020 legislation.
“We started moving toward this day back in December 2011 when Governor Cuomo approved NYSUNY 2020,” Tripathi continued. “The vision that we shared then was to bring the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences downtown to partner with hospitals and research facilities on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.”
Funding support from the UB Foundation facilitated the university's ability to move quickly ahead in 2012 to design and build the new medical school building downtown.
Work for Next Phase Includes Roof, Outer Envelope
Now that steel construction is complete, the building’s permanent roof will be added. More than 300 windows are being installed, and starting this summer, workers will install the building’s outer envelope, including its terra-cotta “skin,” which was chosen for the way it complements the region’s rich architectural heritage.
The building design was produced by HOK, a global design, architecture, engineering and planning firm, which was selected for the project by UB in 2012 after winning an international competition to develop the best design concepts for the new medical school building.
