ALUMNI NEWS | Broadway Family Medicine Clinic Relocation Prep in Full Swing
Earlier this year, University of Minnesota Physicians (M Physicians) announced that the Broadway Family Medicine Clinic planned to relocate. The clinic will continue its proud history of serving the North Minneapolis community at its new location, the northeast corner of Broadway and 26th Avenues in the Jordan neighborhood.
Talks of relocating the Broadway Family Medicine Clinic have been ongoing for a while. The current location is in a retail plaza, which isn’t ideal for a clinic space. Concerns about advertising and visibility, no dedicated clinic parking, lack of a freestanding building — all of these factors figured in the decision to move. Frequent building repairs also hastened their decision.
“We knew that the building really needed some work,” said Oren Avery, clinic manager at the M Physicians Broadway Family Medicine Clinic. “In addition to HVAC repairs, we’ve had flooding issues. Not even a year ago, we lost 12 exam rooms due to flooding.”
In addition to providing excellent care, a residency program also needs to offer cutting-edge education — which necessitates an upgraded facility. The Broadway team knew what they needed in a new space to continue their mission of providing superior care and education. But finding the right building took some time.
“We had some important criteria in searching for a new location that made it challenging, but in a positive way,” Avery said. “Our mission was to remain in the North Minneapolis community, which we have been serving for more than 30 years. We needed to find a freestanding building that was still in close proximity to our patients.”
Another factor was being close to North Memorial Hospital, where residents complete their inpatient training. After a thorough search, the team found an ideal space in the same neighborhood they’ve been serving since the 1970s.
As planning moves forward — choosing the color scheme and figuring out placement of exam rooms — an important step is sourcing artwork for the clinic. To underscore the clinic's place in its community, the team plans to source artwork created by community artists. Leading the effort are Dr. Kacey Justeson and the project architect, who has connections to local artists.
Right now, the plan is to officially open the new clinic and begin seeing patients in late January 2021.
There is a great deal of positivity among faculty, residents, and staff despite challenges they faced this spring. The Broadway clinic sustained damage in May following protests in response to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. In response, North Memorial Family Medicine resident Rose Marie Leslie, MD, quickly set up a GoFundMe to assist with community cleanup. In a matter of days, the community came together to meet the fundraising goal of $5,000 — and then surpassed it by more than $55,000.
A fund has been established specifically for the Broadway clinic relocation. If you would like to learn more and make a tax-deductible gift toward the new Broadway clinic, please visit this page.
