Back in November of 2016, Jericho Road Community Health Center set its sights on an expansion at 1021 Broadway in the Broadway-Fillmore District (see more). Earlier today, an announcement was made stating that a construction loan has been approved. That means that the $1.95 million renovation project will commence, which will allow Jericho Road to convert two floors of the building into a medical suite and patient pharmacy. The long-shuttered property will finally be seeing an infusion of life, thanks to a commitment from M&T Bank to provide a $1.95 million construction loan, as well as a $100,000 charitable donation, which were needed to get the project moving.
“It has been a long journey, but the destination is now in sight,” said Magdalena Nichols, chief officer of development and strategic partnerships for Jericho Road. “With M&T Bank’s support, we are that much closer to the completion of the pharmacy and medical suite spaces, which will help transform this long-vacant property into a beautiful health hub. When complete, this project will help meet the medical and holistic care void that has been deeply felt in this area.”
The medical suite is scheduled to open this July, while the pharmacy will open in the summer of 2019. Additional services and organizations are expected to open in the building over the next two years.
1021 Broadway is considered a significant expansion project for Jericho Road. The development project coincides with ever-growing refugee needs of the community. The health care amenities offered, will supplement two of Jericho Road’s existing health centers, found on Genesee Street, and Barton Street. The new location will help to serve East Side residents in the Broadway-Fillmore District, where there has been a rash of health care provider closings over the years. Jericho Road intends to supplant those closings.
Once the initial two floors are complete, Jericho Road intends to convert the rest of the five-story, 110,618-square-foot building into a community health hub, which will also provide space for nine other nonprofit agencies. The overall project completion date is slated for 2020. Once open in its entirety, the new development will create or retain about 420 permanent jobs. Other features include:
- A patient pharmacy
- Fitness center for patients, employees, and community members
- The Jericho Road medical suite
- Jericho Road dental clinic
- On-site medical imaging through WNY Imaging
Multiple interconnected properties were initially purchased for $482,000 last October by Mosaic 659 Foundation, which was founded by Jericho Road board member Mark Herskind of Baillie Lumber. The site was purchased on the behalf of Jericho Road.
“The revitalization of the Broadway-Fillmore district is gaining momentum—and a major force behind it is the leadership of committed and hardworking entrepreneurs, such as Mark Herskind and the team at Jericho Road,” said Shelley Drake, M&T Bank regional president for Western New York. “Jericho Road’s plans for the community health center are impressive, and once complete, it will be another step toward a strong, vibrant East Side where people have opportunities to live, work, and play.”
The building was originally built in 1910 for the Jahraus-Braun Department Store, before becoming Sattler’s in 1954. The structure suffered at the hands of partial demolition in the early 1990s. The remaining footprint was reconfigured in 2007 into what we see today. The building has been vacant for a decade.
Photo: Jericho Road