Sitework for Medical Center Complete at Ex-Vaughan’s

The owners of the large building at the corner of 47^th Street and Commonwealth Avenue—the former Vaughan’s Garden Center—have completed sitework on the location and are now in the process of securing medical tenants.

Brian Howard, president of Stage Equity Partners, LLC, said that the interest level is high in securing space in the future Western Springs Medical Center, which has a number of particularly appealing factors, not least its prime location halfway between the Adventist hospitals in and .

“We’ve gotten a lot of interest from different medical users who are thrilled at the location between the two hospitals, really excited about the demographics,” Howard said. “We’re one of the few high-quality newer constructed medical office buildings in the area, with great identity—people know the building, you can see the building; [it has] lots of parking and [is] really easy to access. That resonates with folks.”

Stage Equity to develop the Western Springs Medical Center in March of 2011, and have spent the months since developing the site’s infrastructure, like water and sewer management and the parking lot. A medical-specific remodel of the interior is pending the acquisition of tenants.

One part of the original plan has notably changed. The design called for the construction of a second medical office south of the current building; this has been shelved until “the appropriate time” and “the right opportunity,” Howard said. Sitework for a second building has been completed, but there are no current plans to construct it.

Village staff “are encouraged that an experienced ownership group and broker are working on the project,” wrote Marty Scott, Director of Community Development, in an e-mail. “We know it will result in top notch tenants to fill the existing building and eventually lead to construction of the second building approved by the Village Board.”

There is currently no timetable for anyone to move in; Howard says tenants will be finalized “in the near future.”

“The first step in the process was the infrastructure,” Howard said. “That took the longest lead time; you have to do everything proper. We’ve gotten that piece of the puzzle solved, and now we’re working on the lease-up.”

The building has been vacant since Vaughan’s Garden Center closed in June of 2009.