MREJ Awards: Mille Lacs Health System
Monday, April 25th, 2022
Congrats to all of Minnesota RE Journal’s Real Estate Awards finalists and winners. We join our client, Mille Lacs Health System, and the entire project team in celebrating the honor of the Greater Minnesota award.
The Minnesota RE Journal hosts an annual Real Estate Awards program that showcases the top achievements and developments in the state of the past year.
Mille Lacs Health System
Mille Lacs Health System (MLHS) is a community-owned, non-profit hospital and clinic in Onamia, Minnesota, situated between Highway 169 and the shores of Lake Mille Lacs. Originally constructed in 1956 and funded fully by community donations, MLHS embarked on a $30 million two-phased development designed to greatly improve patient experience and modernize healthcare delivery. This includes a new emergency department, acute care, dining, main entrance, and updates to outpatient clinic, same day surgery, lab, therapy and sleep clinic. The project fills the need for critical healthcare services, allowing MLHS to continue to serve its community within central Minnesota’s lakes region.
The project was designed with a refined emphasis on the experience of patients and their families. The team understood the need for private patient spaces that provided accommodations for visitors. This included designing private patient rooms with furniture for families; dedicated waiting spaces with a kitchenette, kids play area and tech bar seating; and public spaces supporting community interactions, like the flexible dining room and expansive lobby.
Years of planning, navigating complex USDA and Board approvals, and collaborating through design and phased construction created an outcome that pivots this organization into the future. MLHS can continue growing as a healthcare provider of choice and as a quality workplace for employees and visiting physicians.
Team members included:
- Owner: Mille Lacs Health System
- General Contractor: Anderson Companies
- Architect & Interior Designer: Pope Architects
- Structural Engineer: IMEG
- MEP Engineer: Dunham
- Food Service: Boelter Premier
- Civil Engineer: Stantec
- Photographer: Nate Johnson Studio & MLHS
Check out the rest of this year’s finalists and honorees on RE Journal’s event page, linked here.
See photos of the Mille Lacs Health System on our project feature page linked here.
