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BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Certainty is boosting prospects for Trinity Medical Center’s Montclair campus as it prepares to move to U.S. 280.
Keith Granger, chief executive of Trinity Medical Center, said Thursday that possibilities for the future of the Montclair property are improved now that the Trinity has cleared the legal hurdles and can relocate to a new U.S. 280 hospital.
“I believe we may see something now that there is a firm plan to move to U.S. 280,” Granger told commercial real estate professionals of NAIOP Alabama at the group’s monthly meeting.
Trinity is investing $280 million to complete the unfinished hospital started by HealthSouth Corp. in what is now the Cahaba Center at Grandview development owned by Daniel Corp. Daniel will build a $40 million medical professional office building and parking deck to go along with the hospital, creating a new campus for Trinity.
Construction and the move could take up to two years, according to Granger. But the fact that the move will now happen removes the cloud of uncertainty that has limited interest in the Montclair property until now, he said.
Those marketing the property are finding that to be the case.
Graham & Co. has been hired to sell the office buildings on the Montclair campus and some vacant land across Montclair Road.
“I firmly agree that the decision by the courts to allow Trinity to move has brought clarity to the situation and will initiate interest in the campus and surrounding area,” said Walter Brown, the Graham & Co. broker listing the Trinity Montclair professional office buildings. “We currently have multiple offers on the 880 Montclair POB and I feel this is a direct result of the announcement.”
The 880 Montclair building is the primary professional office building on the campus. The six-story, 144,300-square-foot building was built in 1989. Brown is also listing the Montclair Medical Office Building for sale. The two-story, 51,000-square-foot building and five acres to the west of the Montclair campus have an asking price of more than $7.1 million.
Sonny Culp of Graham & Co. is selling 5.48 acres of land across from the Montclair Campus with an asking price of $2.3 million. He said there is now an offer to purchase the property but he would not disclose the potential buyer.
A hospital campus has been a fixture on Montclair Road since Baptist Health System opened there in 1966. Neighborhood and city officials have expressed concern over what the loss of the hospital could mean for the area.
A five-year legal challenge against the move by rival hospitals Brookwood Medical Center and St. Vincent’s Health System kept the concern in place while limiting prospects for potential replacements or redevelopment plans. The Alabama Supreme Court’s decision last month to not hear an appeal ended the legal delays and gave Trinity the final green light to proceed with the move.
The time also allowed for the evaluation of the site’s future potential. Birmingham Mayor William Bell created the Montclair Redevelopment Task Force to explore those options. In 2011, the Chicago-based Counselors of Real Estate assembled a six-person Consulting Corps to study the potential uses for the property. That report examined the potential for residential, senior housing, office and other commercial uses for the property.
Graham’s Brown said although the loss of Trinity is a blow to Montclair, having the uncertainty removed could benefit the community in the long run.
“Even though the relocation could be perceived as a negative, having some resolution to the issue prompts renewed interest for other uses for the hospital and surrounding properties,” he said.
[/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][ Read article at al.com ][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]