Wheat Ridge hospital campus hits market ahead of move

CBRE

An aerial photo showing the outline of the property being offered for sale by CBRE. (Courtesy CBRE)

The bulk of a hospital campus in Wheat Ridge has hit the market ahead of the owner’s move to a new facility across town.

CBRE announced Wednesday that it’s listing the 338-bed Lutheran Medical Center. The hospital campus spans 100 acres, roughly the size of 76 football fields. The brokerage said it is marketing 70 of those acres, and added that there is no list price.

The medical center is moving to a 26-acre site at Interstate 70 and 40th Avenue, also in Wheat Ridge. The hospital’s website said the move, in the works for years, will allow it to expand services and provide more specialized treatment.

Lutheran Medical employs more than 2,000 people and said it contributes more than $1.1 billion to the local economy annually. 

Brokers Martin Roth and Eric Roth have the listing. Intermountain Health, a nonprofit that runs 33 hospitals throughout the west, owns the hospital. It took on ownership after its merger with Colorado-based SCL Health in 2022.

The current Lutheran Medical campus is wedged between 38th Avenue to the north and 32nd Avenue to the south, with Dudley Street and Allison Street bounding the land to the west and east. The area is zoned primarily for hospital development. A small portion is designated as low- to moderate-density residential. 

While the land is privately owned, it hasn’t stopped the city of Wheat Ridge from taking interest in the space. The city approved a master plan in 2021 which outlined the community’s preferences for the space’s future. 

Some existing facilities will likely remain, the public documents say, like the Foothills Medical office building along 38th Avenue and the Collier Hospice on the south edge of the site. The buildings take up 7.5 acres of land. Another roughly 13.5 acres are set aside for water and road infrastructure. 

The site is anchored by several historic and large buildings. The Blue House, which sits at the southwest corner of 38th and Lutheran Parkway, completed in 1905, was one of the first structures. At the time, the hospital was a small collection of tents treating tuberculosis patients who came to Colorado for the dry, clean air.  

Then there’s the north tower building, an addition to the main hospital constructed in 2008, which stands over 100 feet tall and consists of 385,000 square feet of space. It’s located near a 9,800-square-foot chapel built in 1932. 

All three buildings are identified as potential preservation and adaptive reuse projects for a new owner, per the city plan.

Other structures on site include the remainder of the hospital, a utility plant, metal storage building, four medical office buildings, behavioral health office and a vacant house once used by the medical facility’s director. 

A number of ideas have been floated for the remaining land.

The plan emphasizes a desire for “buffer” space around the property’s edges, with primarily low-density residential use and public, open spaces. In the land’s interior, higher-density buildings are recommended.

Eight acres that were part of a former Veterans Affairs hospital campus in central Denver sold last year for $41 million.

hospital

A document from a Wheat Ridge master plan showing how the community would like to see the site redeveloped. (Public records)

CBRE

An aerial photo showing the outline of the property being offered for sale by CBRE. (Courtesy CBRE)

The bulk of a hospital campus in Wheat Ridge has hit the market ahead of the owner’s move to a new facility across town.

CBRE announced Wednesday that it’s listing the 338-bed Lutheran Medical Center. The hospital campus spans 100 acres, roughly the size of 76 football fields. The brokerage said it is marketing 70 of those acres, and added that there is no list price.

The medical center is moving to a 26-acre site at Interstate 70 and 40th Avenue, also in Wheat Ridge. The hospital’s website said the move, in the works for years, will allow it to expand services and provide more specialized treatment.

Lutheran Medical employs more than 2,000 people and said it contributes more than $1.1 billion to the local economy annually. 

Brokers Martin Roth and Eric Roth have the listing. Intermountain Health, a nonprofit that runs 33 hospitals throughout the west, owns the hospital. It took on ownership after its merger with Colorado-based SCL Health in 2022.

The current Lutheran Medical campus is wedged between 38th Avenue to the north and 32nd Avenue to the south, with Dudley Street and Allison Street bounding the land to the west and east. The area is zoned primarily for hospital development. A small portion is designated as low- to moderate-density residential. 

While the land is privately owned, it hasn’t stopped the city of Wheat Ridge from taking interest in the space. The city approved a master plan in 2021 which outlined the community’s preferences for the space’s future. 

Some existing facilities will likely remain, the public documents say, like the Foothills Medical office building along 38th Avenue and the Collier Hospice on the south edge of the site. The buildings take up 7.5 acres of land. Another roughly 13.5 acres are set aside for water and road infrastructure. 

The site is anchored by several historic and large buildings. The Blue House, which sits at the southwest corner of 38th and Lutheran Parkway, completed in 1905, was one of the first structures. At the time, the hospital was a small collection of tents treating tuberculosis patients who came to Colorado for the dry, clean air.  

Then there’s the north tower building, an addition to the main hospital constructed in 2008, which stands over 100 feet tall and consists of 385,000 square feet of space. It’s located near a 9,800-square-foot chapel built in 1932. 

All three buildings are identified as potential preservation and adaptive reuse projects for a new owner, per the city plan.

Other structures on site include the remainder of the hospital, a utility plant, metal storage building, four medical office buildings, behavioral health office and a vacant house once used by the medical facility’s director. 

A number of ideas have been floated for the remaining land.

The plan emphasizes a desire for “buffer” space around the property’s edges, with primarily low-density residential use and public, open spaces. In the land’s interior, higher-density buildings are recommended.

Eight acres that were part of a former Veterans Affairs hospital campus in central Denver sold last year for $41 million.

hospital

A document from a Wheat Ridge master plan showing how the community would like to see the site redeveloped. (Public records)

Your subscription has expired. Renew now by choosing a subscription below!

For more informaiton, head over to your profile.

Profile


SUBSCRIBE NOW

 — 

 — 

 — 

TERMS OF SERVICE:

ALL MEMBERSHIPS RENEW AUTOMATICALLY. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR A 1 YEAR MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL AT THE RATE IN EFFECT AT THAT TIME UNLESS YOU CANCEL YOUR MEMBERSHIP BY LOGGING IN OR BY CONTACTING [email protected].

ALL CHARGES FOR MONTHLY OR ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPS ARE NONREFUNDABLE.

EACH MEMBERSHIP WILL ONLY FUNCTION ON UP TO 3 MACHINES. ACCOUNTS ABUSING THAT LIMIT WILL BE DISCONTINUED.

FOR ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR MEMBERSHIP PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]




Return to Homepage

POSTED IN Commercial Real Estate

Editor's Picks

Comments are closed.