Walsh to build $275 million University of Kentucky outpatient building under a P3 deal
Walsh Construction is the contractor on Hamburg East, a 220,000-square-foot, $275 million medical office building that UK HealthCare broke ground on Oct. 15 in Lexington, Ky. Developer PMB will design, build, finance and run it under a public-private partnership.
ENR reported on Nov. 4 that Walsh holds the construction contract, with Perkins&Will as architect and PMB, a healthcare real estate firm, as developer. Walsh declined to comment to ENR. The building is going up on Cowgill Way, near I-75 just off Winchester Road, as the first phase on about 41 acres the university's trustees approved buying in 2023. Cowgill Inc., the former owner, started site preparation in February 2024 and finished it this year, the university said. Substantial completion is set for December 2028; patients should start arriving in spring 2029.
The developer carries the financing. Under the deal, the university keeps the land and leases the site to PMB on a 65-year initial term that can be extended, according to WKYT and the university. PMB plans, designs, builds, finances, operates and maintains the building, then leases it back to UK for 15 years, with renewal options of 2 or 10 years. The university says it keeps control of design standards and clinical operations. The value of Walsh's contract and PMB's financing terms were not disclosed in the university's announcement or in ENR's report.
The plan calls for primary and urgent care for adults and children, an orthopedics, rehabilitation and pain program, specialties including cardiology, neurology and dermatology, plus non-oncology infusion, imaging, a lab and a drive-through pharmacy. UK HealthCare records upward of 3 million outpatient visits each year and expects this building to handle about 300,000 a year by 2034. It is part of a wider outpatient push that includes clinics in Frankfort and Richmond and a planned site on Newtown Pike in Lexington.
Why it matters: On a P3 like this, the developer finances the building and holds it for decades. Trades pricing Hamburg East work should ask whose contract terms and payment schedule flow down through Walsh.
Sources
- Groundbreaking held for 1st building at UK’s Hamburg East locationUKNow (University of Kentucky), Oct 15
- UK HealthCare breaks ground on $275M Hamburg East complex to bring specialty care closer to Lexington, Eastern KentuckyWKYT, Oct 15
- Contractor Chosen for $275M Kentucky Medical Office BuildingENR, Nov 4