$240M Medical Center Celebrates Topping Out

LOVELAND, CO-J.E. Dunn Construction and the Medical Center of the Rockies recently celebrated the “topping out” ceremony of the 590,000-sf medical facility in this Northern Colorado city.

About 200 people watched as a 190-ton crawler crane placed the steel trellis on the fifth floor observation deck that cover the hospital’s fifth floor. The trellis was adorned with an American flag and accompanied by an evergreen tree, age old traditions used to signify the completion of this major milestone. The evergreen is symbolic “life and growth” of the building, respect for the natural resources contributing to the project, as well as for the talent and skill of the construction crews.

Mark Arnold, senior project manager for J.E. Dunn, notes that the “significant milestone” was reached following 427 days of construction and 425,000 hours of construction, with no time lost to accidents.

The total cost of the hospital is $240 million, including construction, equipment, land and infrastructure development. The hospital, being built on a 91-acre campus at the northwest corner of Interstate 25 and US Highway 34, is scheduled to open in early 2007. It is expected to have a $187.9-million revenue impact on the area during its first year of operation. It will create 2,000 new jobs. It is 88% owned by the Poudre Health Valley System, based in Fort Collins, CO and 12% owned by the Regional West Medical Center, Scottsbluff, NE.

J.E. Dunn is working with the Neenan Co. of Fort Collins to construct the Medical Center of the Rockies project designed by HLM Design-Heery International Inc. for Poudre Valley Health System. Once complete the five-story, 136-bed acute care facility will serve patients from Northeastern Colorado, Wyoming and Western Nebraska.

The J.E. Dunn Group, with 14 offices nationwide including Kansas City, Portland, Seattle, Houston, Dallas, Minneapolis and Atlanta, has more than $1.5 billion in annual revenues and more than 2,500 employees.