Regional One outlines rebuild steps, RFQ for owner agent and timeline for land swap

Tish Towns, Regional One’s Executive Vice President and chief administrative officer, told the Shelby County task force the hospital has engaged Griffin & Strong for a disparity study, launched a public-facing dashboard and is developing a website for the rebuild project.

“We have engaged with Griffin and Strong out of Atlanta. We held our first kickoff meeting last month,” Towns said, and added that the public dashboard and project website will be unveiled next month. She said All World has been engaged as program manager and that a request for qualifications for an owner agent will be issued next week, with responses expected mid-September and a selection targeted by the end of the month.

Towns described ongoing discussions over a land swap with the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, saying the swap is a necessary step before architectural and engineering work and site clearing can begin. “The Health Sciences Center is planning to build a College of Medicine…so that work is continuing between both parties, legal counsel, and does require some work with Knoxville,” she said.

Towns also outlined the first-phase deliverables the hospital expects to accomplish in the first year, focusing on the program manager contract, owner-agent selection and initial site work including demolition. She said an A&E firm will validate cost and revenue per square foot during design.

The presentation closed with Towns offering to answer questions and to provide follow-up materials the task force requested.