Renown Health

Transformation is in the Building: Renown South Meadows Medical Center and NexCore Group Break Ground on a New Free-Standing Tower

July 21, 2022

The new space is part of Renown’s larger facilities enhancement project spanning all campuses.

Click here to view flythrough renderings of the new building.

It is with great excitement that Renown Health and NexCore Group announce the groundbreaking of a state-of-the-art Specialty Care Center at Renown South Meadows Medical Center. This three-story building will be adjacent to the existing medical center and is part of Renown’s larger facilities enhancement project.

“Renown Health is proud to celebrate 160 years of caring for the people of northern Nevada, and it is integral that we honor our legacy while looking toward the future and ensuring we continue to meet the needs of our growing community,” said Thomas Graf, MD, FAAFP, Chief Executive Officer of Renown Health. “This new 121,000 gross square foot Specialty Care Center at Renown South Meadows is one of our many expansion projects currently underway to make certain our community has the health resources it needs for generations to come.”

The Specialty Care Center at Renown South Meadows is a collaboration between Renown Health and NexCore Group, a national healthcare real estate investment and development company.

Features of the Specialty Care Center Include:

Level 1 will feature kitchen/dining facilities; expanded laboratory and diagnostic services, including Interventional Radiology; an updated pre-admit function; and a new Cardiac Catheterization Lab.
Level 2 will feature an Ambulatory Surgery Center and an expanded sterile processing department.
Level 3 will include clinical space.

"This expansion, both at Renown South Meadows and Renown Regional on Mill Street, is enhancing our clinical care model to ensure our patients, families, and staff have an innovative, convenient, safe, and compassionate place to both work and receive care,” said Susan Lee, DO, MBA, Chief Operating Officer for Renown South Meadows Medical Center. “These new spaces – designed for and by patients, visitors, and team members – will highlight state-of-the-art technology while enhancing patient safety and an improved hospital experience.”

The planning and design teams behind Renown's facilities expansion projects include several locally owned businesses and veteran and female-owned businesses, many of whom were on site for the groundbreaking event. With a community focus, Renown is proud that the build-out of the Specialty Care Center will employ more than 20 local contractors and upwards of 400 craftspeople.

“Renown Health’s vision to offer health care that is affordable, accessible, and of the highest quality inspires us as this project’s strategic developer. We are honored that Renown has engaged our services to deliver more value-based care to northern Nevada,” said Todd Varney, former Chief Development Officer and Managing Partner of NexCore Group. “At NexCore, we recognize that the future of healthcare demands flexibility and innovation, which is exactly what Renown is doing with the Specialty Care Center.”

More than 100 people attended the groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday, July 20, which emphasizes the excitement that is building across our communities for Renown’s new Specialty Care Center. Event guests included Renown Health leaders; Renown Health Foundation Board Members; residents of the surrounding communities in South Reno; representatives from Renown’s development partner, NexCore Group; construction partners; design and engineering partners; and many frontline healthcare workers who call South Meadows home every day.

Custom-designed, class A medical office space is still available in the Specialty Care Center. Interested healthcare providers are encouraged to contact Stacey Hall at stacey.hall@nexcoregroup.com or 949-416-4566.

To learn more about the expansion projects underway at Renown, please visit renown.org/ExpandingCare.

About Renown Health

Renown Health is the region’s largest, locally governed, not-for-profit integrated healthcare network serving Nevada, Lake Tahoe and northeast California. With a diverse workforce of more than 7,000 employees, Renown has fostered a longstanding culture of excellence, determination and innovation. The organization comprises a trauma center, two acute care hospitals, a children’s hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, a medical group and urgent care network, and the region’s largest, locally owned not-for-profit insurance company, Hometown Health. Renown is currently enrolling participants in the world’s largest community-based genetic population health study, the Healthy Nevada Project®. For more information, visit renown.org.

About NexCore Group LLC

NexCore Group is a national healthcare real estate investment and development company that focuses on acquiring, developing, owning, and managing healthcare facilities including medical office buildings, wellness facilities, ambulatory surgery centers, single and multi-specialty physician buildings, life sciences facilities, seniors housing communities and transitional rehabilitation centers. NexCore partners with top healthcare systems, hospitals, physician groups, and assisted living, memory care and post-acute care operators, and reputable institutional and high net worth investors to develop, acquire and own high quality assets that serve their communities through significant job creation and the provision of quality healthcare services. NexCore is unique in the healthcare development field, specifically with a regard to a singular focus on project strategy and planning. Since 2004, the NexCore team has completed $4.7 billion in healthcare real estate transactions throughout 29 states, developed and acquired over 14.3 million square feet of healthcare properties across the country and currently manages over $2.9 billion of healthcare facilities spanning 6.8 million square feet. The company has been recognized repeatedly as one of the Top Healthcare Real Estate Developers in the U.S. by Modern Healthcare and HREI. NexCore is headquartered in Denver, with regional offices in Bethesda, Md.; Charlotte N.C.; Dallas; Detroit; Houston; Indianapolis; Los Angeles; Orlando, Fla.; Phoenix; and Seattle. For more information, please visit NexCoreGroup.com.

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Dr. Brian Erling, President and CEO of Renown Health, has been awarded the prestigious 2025 Governor’s Award in recognition of his visionary leadership and instrumental role in establishing the first kidney transplant program for northern Nevada. Presented at the annual Nevada Donor Network Gala by Governor Joe Lombardo at his residence in Carson City on May 8, the Governor’s Award honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to organ, eye, and tissue donation in the state. Dr. Erling’s efforts mark a historic first for healthcare in northern Nevada, giving residents access to lifesaving transplant care close to home for the first time. “I have the distinct pleasure on behalf of the Nevada Donor Network, the great state of Nevada and myself to award the 2025 Governor’s Award to Dr. Brian Erling of Renown Health,” said Governor Joe Lombardo. Joe Ferreira, president and CEO of the Nevada Donor Network, added his congratulations. “This is a momentous step forward for our state and provides hope and healing to those awaiting transplants and their families. The expansion of essential transplantation services across our state is made possible because of an extraordinary partnership. Thank you, Dr. Erling, for paving the way for better health outcomes and a brighter future for those in need.” Dr. Erling accepted the award, saying, “Many people in this room tonight worked long and hard to bring the Renown Transplant Institute® to our region, and are so deserving of this award. I am happy, on their behalf, to accept this award. I started my healthcare career as an emergency medicine physician and sometimes had to tell families about a loved one's death. I vowed to preserve the legacy of those patients if given the chance.” He added, “When I came to Renown from Colorado, one of the first questions I asked was, with the dramatic growth in our population in northern Nevada, are we able to make additional investments in expertise and clinical programs to help keep more care local? Increasing access to health care, both preventive care and advanced treatment—is critical for a community’s well-being and optimal health.” “As a team, we thought it would be incredible if we could bring a transplant program to our area. Just think about how many people have had to travel more than four hours out of the area and rent hotel rooms for weeks. Not every person can afford that. We think about things like that because at Renown Health, we care for everyone. When people have to travel to Vegas, or Salt Lake City or California, to get the care that they need, that is a health equity issue.” “So, we stepped in, and transplant became a top priority for the entire team. We have amazing people who have made this happen. Dr. Ernesto Molmenti has 25 years of transplant experience and came from Northwell Health in New York City to help lead this program. Dr. David Mulligan, also a transplant surgeon, comes to Renown from Yale and the Mayo Clinic. Ashley Cardenas, the administrator for the Renown Transplant Institute joins us from University of California, San Diego- School of Medicine. We have recruited some amazing people.” “And here at Renown, we have so many outstanding leaders who made this happen. From Chris Nicholas, our CEO at Renown Regional Medical Center, to Dr. Rahul Mediwala, CEO of our medical group and a nephrologist who has spent years planning for this program, to Jimmy Lao, director of nursing for our Emergency Rooms, to Taralynn Basham, director of nursing for our ICUs, and everyone in between- we say, “thank you!” He finished by saying, “Thank you for the honor. We are excited to get the Renown Transplant Institute up and running, and we are looking to do our first kidney transplant within the next several weeks. Thank you, Governor, for making healthcare a priority. It has been a pleasure working with you and your administration.” Assessments Now Open for Kidney Transplant Candidates The Renown Transplant Institute® at Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno is one of only 250 transplant centers nationwide and one of only two centers in all of Nevada. The Renown team is working closely with local healthcare providers and social workers at area dialysis centers to streamline referrals and ensure a smooth transition for patients to the transplant list. The Renown Transplant Institute is now accepting referrals for kidney transplant. Candidates will undergo a thorough evaluation process to determine their eligibility and readiness for a transplant. Physicians may now refer patients, or people with end-stage kidney disease who wish to be screened for a kidney transplant by Dr. Narisorn Atsava-Svate and Dr. Ernesto Molmenti, to call 1-833-RING-NTI (746-4684). For more information visit https://www.renown.org/locations/renown-transplant-institute and https://www.nvtransplant.org/. It is anticipated that the first kidney transplant surgeries will take place by July. To join the fight, donate to the Renown Health Foundation, a non-profit organization registered with the State of Nevada and recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) entity at www.renown.org/donate or 775-982-5545. As the region’s only Level 2 Trauma Center for adults and children, Renown serves over 1 million people and 100,000 square miles. In U.S. News and World Report Best Hospital Rankings, Renown Regional Medical Center is named #1 Hospital for the State of Nevada for 2024, 2023 and 2022.

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