The Bronx is last in New York state when it comes to health outcomes, and no region of the borough has wider health disparities than the South Bronx. Hoping to bridge health gaps in the borough’s southern corridor, Community Healthcare Network (CHN) is set to expand services — which include no-cost dental, mental and physical health services — to a new 8,000-foot facility in September 2024.
The Bronx is last in New York state when it comes to health outcomes, and no region of the borough has wider health disparities than the South Bronx. Hoping to bridge health gaps in the borough’s southern corridor, Community Healthcare Network (CHN) is set to expand services — which include no-cost dental, mental, and physical health services — to a new 8,000-foot facility in September 2024.
The move from its 975 Westchester Ave. location to the vacant 1000 Westchester Ave. lot is just across the street in Longwood’s main thoroughfare Southern Boulevard. The proximity of the ground-up construction and relocation efforts, CHN’s president and CEO Bob Hayes told the Bronx Times, allows patients to receive care without disrupted services.
Christopher Turner, principal and managing director of Transaction Services at real estate consultant Denham Wolf, noted that while Southern Boulevard isn’t teeming with open real estate options, it was a priority to keep CHN’s health care services close to avoid services from going dark or moving service from the area entirely.
“The (975 Westchester) building was nearing the end of its lifespan and it was smaller than they really needed, especially as they wanted to expand and provide a wider range of services,” said Turner. “If the move had been further away, their service may have had to go offline in the current building while they waited for big renovations … I think this is the best option because services aren’t going to be affected.”
Turner said modernization of healthcare facilities needs to reflect patient space, upgrades in high-end medical technology, and adapt to rising trends in patient flow. According to developers, Community Healthcare’s lease is a “synthetic condominium” lease, a type of deal that exempts a nonprofit from paying real estate taxes.
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