Breaking ground for the new neurosciences center on Aug. 31 were (l-r): Stephen and Denise Adams, donors; Christopher O'Connor, YNHHS CEO and president; Sister Maureen Shaughnessy, general superior, Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth; Nancy J. Brown, MD, dean, Yale School of Medicine; Mary Farrell, chair, YNHH Board of Trustees; Vincent Calarco, chair, YNHHS Board of Trustees; Peter Salovey, president, Yale University; Murat Gunel, MD, chief of Neurosurgery, YNHHS, and chair of Neurosurgery, YSM; David Hafler, MD, neurologist-in-chief, YNHH, and chairman, Department of Neurology, YSM; Justin Elicker, mayor, City of New Haven; Tyisha Walker-Myers, president, New Haven Board of Alders; and Keith Churchwell, MD, president, YNHH.
With an official launch, YNHH’s neurosciences center begins making history
The Sherman Tower, at the corner of Sherman Avenue and George Street, will become the new Saint Raphael Campus entrance.
Nearly 200 people gathered Aug. 31 for a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the official start of the neurosciences center on Yale New Haven Hospital’s Saint Raphael Campus.
Among them: a group of nurses from YNHH’s Epilepsy Center, Stroke Program, Neurosciences Center, Neuro ICU and other areas.
“I’ve been waiting for this for years,” said Nona Timario, RN, patient services manager, Neuro ICU. “It’s finally happening!”
The nurses, who came together from different neuroscience areas, represented the purpose of the project so many celebrated that day: A center that will, in one place, offer innovative neurological and neurosurgical diagnosis, treatment, care and research for a wide range of conditions.
The 505,000-square-foot, $838 million center, scheduled to open to patients in 2027, is the largest healthcare project in state history.
“The physical and financial size of this project reflect the health system’s commitment to the City of New Haven, State of Connecticut and beyond,” said Yale New Haven Health CEO and President Christopher O’Connor.
YNHH nurses from various neurosciences areas joined the groundbreaking celebration with a selfie.
He announced that a significant portion of the project will be named the Adams Neurosciences Center, after major project donors Stephen and Denise Adams.
“From each of us – our employees, our staff, our physicians and community – I want to extend our eternal gratitude,” O’Connor told the couple.
The Adamses joined officials from Yale New Haven Health, YNHH, the State of Connecticut, City of New Haven, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University and the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, which founded the former Hospital of Saint Raphael in 1907.
YNHH President Keith Churchwell, MD, noted that neurology is a “rapidly growing field.” It comprises more than 600 types of conditions, including complex brain and spine disorders; epilepsy and seizures; autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis; movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease; and neurovascular conditions such as stroke.
He and other speakers said the center will transform care for patients in the community, the state and beyond.
New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker called the project a “game-changer” for the city, saying, “this solidifies the hospital’s standing as a national leader in patient care.”
About the neurosciences center
A rendering of the new Yale New Haven Hospital neurosciences and bed towers project
A birds-eye view of the project. At left is the new neurosciences center, with two inpatient bed towers. On the upper right are the new Orchard Street Garage and the current Orchard Street Garage, which will be rebuilt during phase two of the project.
Project highlights include an eight-floor Sherman Tower with 102 single-bed rooms for medical and surgical orthopedic, spine, and neurosciences patients; neurosurgery ORs; and radiology and biomedical imaging. The Sherman Tower will become the new Saint Raphael Campus main entrance, with access from George Street.
A seven-floor McGivney Tower will be built atop the existing McGivney Advanced Surgery Center. The tower will include 112 single-bed rooms on medical and surgical intensive/intermediate units; a neurosciences ICU; and radiology and biomedical imaging.
Each patient room will be able to support ICU-level care, if needed, and several floors can be converted to negative pressure.
The construction project also calls for more parking at the SRC. Work has begun on a new garage on a former open surface lot at Orchard and George streets. During the second phase of the project, the existing Orchard Street Garage will be rebuilt. In addition, a 200-space garage will be built under the Sherman Tower.
Neurosciences center project construction timeline:
Summer 2022
Site preparations and enabling work in progress, preparation for fall demolition
New garage in progress on Orchard Street
Winter into Spring 2023
Sherman Tower and underground garage excavation in progress
McGivney Tower steel erection underway
Summer 2023
McGivney Tower steel topped out
Winter 2024
Sherman Tower steel topped out
Orchard Street Garage construction complete
Fall 2024
Sherman Tower curtain wall in progress
Fall 2026 into Winter 2027
Construction complete; furniture and equipment fit out begins
Emergency Department interior renovations complete
Spring 2027
Neurosciences Center opens
