Saunders Construction Inc. Breaks Ground on Children’s Hospital Colorado South Campus in Highlands Ranch

New location to provide urgent, outpatient specialty, inpatient and surgery care, along with imaging and diagnostic services

Centennial, Colorado (May 23, 2012) – Saunders Construction, Inc. is pleased to announce the start of the new Children’s Hospital Colorado South Campus in Highlands Ranch with a ground breaking ceremony held on May 23, 2012.

As the Construction Manager and General Contractor, Saunders joined the architectural team of Davis Partnership and FKP Architects, owner’s representative Balfour Concord as well as Shea Properties and PrimeWest to kick-off construction on the new 175,000 SF facility located on the corner of Plaza Drive and Lucent Boulevard, south of C-470 in Highlands Ranch.

“Children’s Hospital Colorado is obviously a valued member of our community, providing important care and support to our youth,” said Greg Schmidt, president for Saunders Construction “The South Campus will be a significant connection to the CHC network and Saunders is proud to again partner with Children’s Hospital Colorado to build this exciting facility.”

The new South Campus marks Saunders’ 18th project with Children’s Hospital Colorado including the Ambulatory Surgery Center in Broomfield, Colorado.

Official Press Release Issued by Children’s Hospital Colorado:

Aurora, Colo. (May 23, 2012) – Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado) today celebrated the groundbreaking on its future Children’s Hospital Colorado South Campus (South Campus) in Highlands Ranch, Colo. Slated to open at the end of 2013, the South Campus will offer a wide range of expert pediatric care including urgent, outpatient specialty, inpatient and surgery care along with state-of-the-art imaging and diagnostic services. Children’s Colorado expects to host nearly 80,000 patient visits at the South Campus during its first year. The approximately 175,000-square-foot facility will be located on 22 acres of land at the corner of Plaza Drive and Lucent Blvd., south of C-470.

“The southern communities along the Front Range have continued to grow at a rapid rate, particularly attracting families with children,” said Jim Shmerling, President and CEO of Children’s Colorado. “With this growth has come an increased demand for convenient access to expert pediatric care. With our new South Campus, as well as our soon-to-open specialty care clinic in Colorado Springs, Children’s Colorado will be better positioned to meet the needs of families in these communities.”

The overall scope of services at the new South Campus will include:

• Inpatient Care for acute care services
• Outpatient clinics – Cardiology, Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, Digestive Health Institute, Endocrinology, ENT, Genetics, Gynecology, Neurology,
• Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Pediatric Surgery, Pulmonary, Rehab and Urology
• 24/7 Urgent Care – 22 exam rooms for lower acuity patients
• Sports Medicine Program with gym and physical therapy
• Surgery Center –  4 operating rooms
• Infusion Center
• Laboratory Services – lab draws and specimen processing to support patients from Urgent Care, Inpatient, Infusion, Clinics and Operating Rooms, as well as walk-in patients
• Imaging Services – General Radiology, MRI, Ultrasound, Fluoroscopy and CT
• Diagnostic Services – Audiology, ECHO, PFT, EKG and EEG

In addition, the facility will feature a family hospitality area, play areas for patients and siblings,  a cafeteria/coffee shop and conference rooms. Children’s Colorado is partnering with Ronald McDonald House Charities, Starlight Foundation, and Denver Botanic Gardens on landscape design and a healing garden.

Several existing south-metro Children’s Colorado locations will consolidate to the South Campus, including:

• Children’s Hospital Colorado Outpatient Specialty Care, Centennial at 7960 South University Boulevard
• Children’s Hospital Colorado Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, Littleton at 7720 South Broadway
• Children’s Hospital Colorado Orthopedic Care, Centennial at 9094 E. Mineral Avenue (Radiology services will remain at this location)
• Children’s Hospital Colorado Outpatient Specialty and Therapy Care, Littleton at 151 W. County Line Road (Audiology, speech and language services, physical therapy and occupational therapy will remain at this location.)

The 125 employees who currently work at the existing south-metro locations will be relocated to the South Campus. Children’s Colorado anticipates hiring an additional 175 people. The cost of the South Campus is approximately $100 million.

About Children’s Hospital Colorado
Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado) has defined and delivered pediatric health care excellence for more than 100 years. Founded in 1908, Children’s Colorado is a leading pediatric network entirely devoted to the health and well-being of children. Continually recognized as one of the nation’s outstanding hospitals by U.S. News & World Report and ranked fifth on its Best Children’s Hospitals 2011-12 Honor Roll, Children’s Colorado is known both for its nationally and internationally recognized medical, research and education programs, as well as the full spectrum of everyday care for kids throughout Colorado and surrounding states. Children’s Colorado is recognized for excellence in nursing from the American Nurses Credentialing Centers and has been designated a Magnet® hospital since 2005. With more than 1,000 health care professionals representing the full spectrum of pediatric specialties, the network for Children’s Colorado includes 15 regional locations including its main campus on the Anschutz Medical Campus, and more than 400 outreach clinics. For more information, visit www.childrenscolorado.org and connect with Children’s Colorado on Facebook (www.facebook.com/childrenshospitalcolorado) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/ChildrensColo).

About Saunders Construction, Inc.
Saunders Construction, Inc. serves the commercial building industry as a full-service general contractor and construction manager.  A leader in the Colorado construction industry since its inception in 1972, Saunders’ experience includes a wide range of project types. Saunders is one of the region’s largest general contractors and is the recipient of more than 100 industry awards for its construction excellence, employee achievements and community contributions.  In addition, Saunders is a member of the Citadel Group – an alliance of nine regional construction-related companies with operations in 19 cities. For additional information, please visit www.saundersci.com.