Faulkner University has started on the construction of the final phase of its College of Health Sciences.
Donors provided nearly $3.6 million for the final phase, which will consist of a brick-and-mortar facelift on the former Burlington Coat Factory location. The project also will rework and landscape the parking area and establish a bridge that will connect the main campus to the east campus, where the College of Health Sciences is located.
Faulkner University purchased the former 13-acre Montgomery East Plaza Shopping Center in June 2020. The previous two construction phases of the College of Health Sciences renovated the shopping center to create labs, classrooms and a community clinic.
“Faulkner is breathing new life into these retail buildings in a major way, not to mention the great things that are being done inside in the way of health care for our community,” said Ed Grimes, a Montgomery city council member.
The reworking of the parking area and front entrance will include a concourse and a porte-cochere directly in front of the building so patients can enter the free therapy clinic with ease and be shielded from the elements. The concourse will connect to the bridge, which will cross the drainage channel near the Faulkner Law building and end at the Rotunda. The plan for the bridge currently consists of two lanes for pedestrian traffic and an eight-foot sidewalk, wide enough for a golf cart.
“The overall project, plus the addition of the bridge and concourse, will make for an overall aesthetically pleasing look that will attract students and be consistent with the high quality of education and clinical services being provided within,” said Mitch Henry, president of Faulkner University.
Construction on the third phase is expected to take up to a year. Construction on the bridge should begin closer to January 2024 and should be completed by April 2024. Marshall Design-Build LLC, which was responsible for the construction of the first two phases, will continue their work to complete the final phase. The bridge portion will be constructed by Newell Road Builders Inc. out of Hope Hull, Alabama.
