UChicago Medicine receives initial OK to build large outpatient center in Crown Point, Indiana

The Crown Point Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) voted unanimously Monday evening to approve the University of Chicago Medicine’s requests to build a 116,000-square-feet multispecialty care center in Northwest Indiana.

The proposed development — for a facility in the Beacon Hill Development District at I-65 and 109th Avenue — will go to Crown Point’s City Council for review before heading to the Plan Commission for final approval. Following all necessary approvals, construction of the building would begin in early 2022. The facility could open as soon as spring 2023 and create about 150 new jobs in both clinical and non-clinical roles. Hospital leadership anticipates providing care to an estimated 110,000 patients a year at the Crown Point care center, which would be the academic health system’s largest off-site facility.

The academic health system’s proposal includes:

• Micro-hospital, with an emergency department and short-stay inpatient unit
• Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Medical office building, staffed by experts in cancer, cardiology, digestive diseases, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pediatrics, transplant medicine and women’s health
• Imaging, infusion and laboratory services
• Outpatient surgery center

“UChicago Medicine’s reputation for providing high-quality care and for bringing research to the bedside is built around the concept that a multidisciplinary approach — specialists and subspecialists working together with community physicians and health systems — is best for patient care and for treating complex diseases and conditions,” said Kenneth S. Polonsky, MD, Dean and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Chicago. “The proposed facility would allow our physicians to collaborate with community providers to deliver an integrated and seamless experience for patients who need convenient access to advanced care, clinical trials, and the latest diagnostic and treatment options.”

About 15% of Northwest Indiana residents travel outside of the region to get medical care. Of those patients, roughly 1 in 5 go to UChicago Medicine’s facilities in and near Chicago. In addition, roughly 10% of UChicago Medicine employees live in Northwest Indiana.

“The Northwest Indiana community is important to us, particularly since so many of our patients and employees call this region home,” said Tom Jackiewicz, President of the University of Chicago Medical Center and Chief Operating Officer of the UChicago Medicine health system. “Many of our patients spend time traveling to and from Northwest Indiana to reach our facilities to get the care they need. Our proposed facility would make the lives of our patients a little easier.”

Based in Chicago’s historic Hyde Park neighborhood on the South Side, UChicago Medicine already provides specialty care in Merrillville, Munster and Schererville. Those locations are in addition to UChicago Medicine’s integrated care network of 10 ambulatory care facilities and several dozen clinic sites across the Chicagoland area.

FAST FACTS: UCHICAGO MEDICINE’S FACILITY IN NORTHWEST INDIANA

• Location: near I-65 and 109th Avenue in Crown Point’s Beacon Hill Development District
• Size of facility: 116,000 square feet
• Healthcare services to be offered:
  • Micro-hospital, with an emergency department and a short-stay inpatient unit
  • Imaging center, with MRI, CT, PET, X-ray and ultrasound capabilities
  • Ambulatory surgery center
  • Laboratory and imaging facilities
  • Medical office clinic with access to specialists and subspecialists
  • Access to 8 clinical centers of excellence: Comprehensive Cancer Center, Digestive Diseases, Heart & Vascular, Neurosciences, Orthopedic Surgery, Pediatrics, Transplant, Women’s Health
• Estimate number of patient visits each year: 110,000
• Number of jobs created: at least 150
• Anticipated timing: construction in early 2022 and opening in spring 2023