Urban hospitals are responding to competition from new suburban rivals by activating the street retail that surrounds them.
These activation strategies start by orienting many traditional, ground-floor hospital spaces to face the exterior. At Thomas Jefferson University’s medical campus in Philadelphia, the patient services and pharmacy components were turned outward to help activate the neighborhood. Nearby retail space was tenanted with restaurants and service retail to help complement the hospital and connecting medical school.
Urban hospitals have three main stakeholder categories that must be addressed. The first is hospital staff and administration — who often work long, odd hours and require retail that can serve them throughout the day. Patients and their families are also major stakeholders who require easy access to quick-service restaurants and service-oriented retail. In the
urban setting, hospitals must also consider surrounding office populations who share the need for service and restaurant offerings.
When evaluating leasing alternatives, hospitals must consider other factors beyond how well a retail concept will serve stakeholders. Hospitals also want retailers that will reinforce their health and wellness mission. They prefer restaurant concepts that offer healthy menu items and fresh foods and often avoid concepts that offer alcohol or allow smoking, further adding to the overall sense of well-being.
