News Release Archive
|
Memphis Bioworks™ Foundation Announces that Phase I Demolition and Clean Up are Complete at UT-Baptist Research Park Site
Project Meets Budgetary and Time Goals Established in 2005
MEMPHIS, Tennessee, November 27, 2006 – The Memphis Bioworks Foundation announced today that the Phase I demolition and debris removal at the UT-Baptist Research Park site has been completed on time and on budget.
The demolition work began at the site in January, 2005, with the removal of the four-story Service building located on land donated by Baptist Memorial Health Care, where the hospital’s Midtown campus was formerly located. At the time, the Foundation announced the planned demolition of three more buildings, including the Main Tower, by the end of 2005.
The eight-story Interns’ Residence and the 10-story Physicians and Surgeons buildings were imploded in May, followed by the implosion of the 22-story Main Tower in November.
Once the Main Tower was imploded, the Foundation announced that debris removal would take approximately 11 months to complete.
“Today, I am pleased to announce that all of the demolition clean up work has been completed within the timeframes we announced last year,” said Dr. Steven J. Bares, Executive Director and President of the Memphis Bioworks Foundation. “Even more importantly, we did not exceed our estimated cost of $ 15.1 million. We have had a great team of individuals and companies working together to ensure that the money invested in the UT-Baptist Research Park by our partners is put to optimal use.”
The Foundation contracted with Chandler Demolition Co., Inc. of Memphis to oversee the project. The contractor hired Controlled Demolition, Inc. to handle the implosions of the Main Tower and the Physicians and Surgeons buildings. The Hnedak Bobo Group served as project manager.
“Both companies were very dedicated to helping us meet our goals on time and on budget,” says Bares. “It is a credit to their professionalism that we have been able to keep the promises we made in early 2005.”
In addition to the demolitions and debris removal, a number of improvements have already been made to the site, including construction of the primary road for the truck docks, installation of sewage and drainage lines and grading preparation so that construction can begin early next year. The Foundation also has added a turn lane on Madison Avenue for easier site access and has had the sidewalks, which were already in disrepair before the implosion, rebuilt.
“Now that we have grass growing on the site, many wonder what comes next,” reported Bares, who added that construction of a new University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy and a Regional Biocontainment Laboratory are scheduled to begin in early 2007. “We have now cleared the path for the future growth of the UT-Baptist Research Park and it is time to start building the bricks-and-mortar foundation for the bioscience hub of Memphis.”
Completion of the research park is estimated to take ten years and will be completed in six phases. Plans call for an impressive, 15-acre campus designed for the highly specialized needs of the growing bioscience community in Memphis. Amenities will include the Regional Biocontainment Lab offering a suite of biosafety level (BSL) 2 and 3 laboratory modules; a cadaveric training facility; computational access to the Lambda Rail through direct connectivity with Oak Ridge; substantial laboratory research; a new College of Pharmacy building at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, which is adjacent to the new research park; incubator space; facilities for training sessions; meeting space; and security.
The Memphis Bioworks Foundation, a not-for-profit organization, was formed in early 2001 to establish the Memphis region as an internationally recognized center for biomedical technology through education, research, job training, and commercialization. Baptist Memorial Health Care donated its property in the Medical Center to the Foundation for the site of the UT-Baptist Research Park, which serves as the focal point of the city’s biomedical economic development. For more information, visit the Foundation’s website at www.memphisbioworksfoundation.org.
