Abbott Northwestern Hospital Campus Revitalization
Construction on the Abbott Northwestern Hospital campus will affect your arrival and access points. The hospital drive, main entrance and drop-off area are closed. If you’re driving to campus, please park in the Main Ramp, using the entrance on 10th Avenue. Use the ramp elevators to reach the skyway level (D/E), then follow signs to the main lobby.
28th Street Closed Weekends in March and April
On weekends in March and early April, 28th Street is scheduled to be closed from 6 p.m. Fridays through 5 a.m. Mondays. The closure is between Chicago and 10th Avenues so construction teams can place elevated steel sections of the skyway. Watch the work underway on the temporary skyway. Teams will open the road earlier if possible.
Allina Health Abbott Northwestern Hospital:
Committed to improving our home in the Phillips Neighborhood for the long run
Allina Health's multi-year infrastructure project at the Abbott Northwestern Hospital campus is underway. This work will help us transform our patient facilities and prepare us to provide care for the next 50 years in a neighborhood we’ve called home for more than 140 years.
This project is part of our commitment to redefine health care. We call it the Whole Way to Better. It’s about investing in our communities, addressing big issues in health care, and delivering whole person care for body, mind, spirit and connections to others.
Before we improve Abbott Northwestern Hospital, we must complete two critical infrastructure updates first:
- Build a new Central Utility Plant (CUP)
- Build a new parking facility, now called the Purple Ramp.
These improvements will support the entire hospital campus, including the:
Surgical and Critical Care Pavilion
Concept drawing of a new Surgical and Critical Care Pavilion at 10th Avenue and Andersen Lane.
WHAT: The Surgical and Critical Care Pavilion will replace the hospital’s existing operating rooms and will create new spaces to treat patients requiring critical care.
WHERE: A new building will be constructed in the middle of the Abbott Northwestern Hospital campus. One wing of the building will replace a four-story parking ramp currently sitting on 10th Avenue.
WHEN: This project, including preparation work, began in late 2022.
WHY:
- Building the Surgical and Critical Care Pavilion enables us to move patient care out of some of the oldest buildings on our campus.
- These changes will allow us to improve care environments for our patients, visitors, and staff.
- Abbott Northwestern Hospital currently relies on operating rooms built in the mid-1900s, at a time when very little technology was used during surgeries. The size of these operating rooms do not accommodate modern surgical technologies. These limitations impact the types of procedures that can be performed at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.
- New critical care spaces will be built to support increased need and future technologies. They are also being built to support the services required to provide this high level of care.
- These changes also enable the replacement of old, inefficient buildings with highly energy efficient buildings.
Transportation Hub, now called the Purple Parking Ramp
Concept drawing of the Purple Parking Ramp on Chicago Avenue, adjacent to the Greenway
WHAT: The new Purple Parking Ramp provides parking for patients and employees. It supports bikes and other non-vehicle transportation users. And it improves the look, feel and safety of the street level.
- This new facility enhances the safety and usability of Chicago Avenue and the sidewalk along the Greenway. Improvements include new lighting, street level office space leased to local organizations, plants and trees, and versatility for future uses.
- The Purple Parking Ramp also relocated overhead power lines underground for improved safety.
- The roof of the new structure will feature a community solar garden.
WHEN: This project is complete, with the exception of the community solar garden, which will be installed in fall 2023.
WHY:
- We needed better parking for the 200,000+ patients who come from all over the Midwest for care at Abbott Northwestern Hospital every year. Also, our employees needed better support for multiple modes of commuting, like biking.
- The Purple Parking Ramp helps reduce neighborhood congestion by getting vehicles off the streets.
- The Purple Parking Ramp continues to be part of our strategy to reduce the use of single-occupancy motor vehicles for commuting. Learn more about Allina Health’s innovative program to reduce our single-occupancy vehicle rate.
Learn more about the sustainable features of the Transportation Hub.
Central Utility Plant (CUP)
Concept drawing of a new Central Utility Plant at 26th Street and Chicago Avenue
WHAT: The Central Utility Plant will replace the hospital’s old energy and steam producing equipment with more reliable and energy-efficient technology.
WHERE: A new building will go up at Chicago Avenue and East 26th Street, replacing the Harriet Walker and Education buildings.
WHEN: This project is expected to begin in April 2021.
WHY: There are a number of reasons driving the new Central Utility Plant project...
- Abbott Northwestern Hospital currently relies on equipment from 1956 to generate steam to heat and cool its buildings, sterilize 5 million surgical instruments per year and heat the Children’s Minnesota – Minneapolis campus. It is time for our outdated equipment to be replaced.
- Hospitals need reliable power to provide 24/7 emergency, surgical and other medical services.
- Hospitals are required to be self-sustaining for up to four days in the event of a power outage. This requires reliable and efficient generators.
Learn more about the sustainable features of the Central Utility Plant.
Open communications are vital
We are committed to keeping you informed. Check back for updates about this project.
For questions, concerns or ideas, call the Allina Health campus development phone line: 612-262-1010612-262-1010
Project website: Visit this page for information updates.
Follow us on Twitter @AbbottHospital
Community commitment
As we begin improvements to Abbott Northwestern Hospital, our continued dedication to our neighbors and community will be stronger than ever.
Environmental sustainability
Taking care of our environment is critical to ensure good health for our community.
Newsroom
Hear what our neighbors and community partners are saying about the Abbott Northwestern Hospital Campus Revitalization Program.