Cooperation agreement provides new opportunities for Sahlgrenska Life
Thursday, 22 December 2016Västfastigheter, Vitartes and Akademiska Hus have signed a cooperative agreement for the development of Sahlgrenska Life – a Life Science cluster that links Sahlgrenska University Hospital with the University of Gothenburg’s research and education activities at Medicinareberget.
Sahlgrenska University Hospital and the University of Gothenburg have engaged in dialogue for several years about creating a Life Science cluster linking research, health care and business. Such contexts promote innovation, new jobs and a basis for attracting cutting edge expertise to the Västra Götaland region.
In 2015 Västfastigheter and Vitartes signed a cooperation agreement to jointly explore the possibilities for the Sahlgrenska Life construction project and in October 2015 launched an architectural design competition aimed at obtaining proposals for the buildings. The winning proposal, “Flöden”, designed by Sweco and Arkitema Architects will be presented on 27 April this year. The proposal shows how the Life Science cluster might look and work in the area.
Akademiska Hus, which owns and manages a large portion of the land and buildings on Medicinareberget, has engaged in discussion with the University of Gothenburg for some time regarding the University’s needs for facilities and the link to the University Hospital. The architectural competition gave inspiration to explore alternative locations for Sahlgrenska Life where Akademiska Hus land is required. The University of Gothenburg approved of the proposal after which Akademiska Hus initiated discussions with Västfastigheter and Vitartes about a collaborative effort and development of a slightly larger area.
“When Akademiska Hus’ land is added to the project new opportunities arise for Sahlgrenska Life. We reached an agreement to move forward together fairly quickly,” says Steinar Stokke, CEO of Vitartes.
“We are extremely pleased to be able to participate in the Sahlgrenska Life project. What we add to this collaborative effort is our experience from similar projects and our land, which enables the buildings to connect to the activities at Medicinareberget in an even better way,” says Birgitta van Dalen, Director of Business Development, Akademiska Hus.
Sahlgrenska Life will link research and education at Medicinareberget with clinical care in the hospital. Right now there are plans for two buildings at Medicinareberget and one on the hospital side. The three will be linked by a fourth building over the street Per Dubbsgatan. Services and stores on the ground floor are proposed for the street itself.
The parties are now initiating phase 1 of the joint project, which includes continued studies, local planning and further development of the concept.
“Now we will work with our clients to formulate programme documents and drawings with a focus on producing a local plan. The programme documents will reflect our common visions and goals,” says Lars Jansson, property director at Västfastigheter.
Sweco and Arkitema Architects, which won the architectural competition for Sahlgrenska Life, will now further develop the proposal using Akademiska Hus’ sketches for inspiration.
Facts in brief:
Construction start: Not decided, prelim. 2019
Completion: Estimated 2021–2023
Developers: Akademiska Hus, Vitartes and Västfastigheter
Architect: Sweco and Arkitema Architects
Total gross area: Approximately 115,000 m²
Building 1, on the hospital side
The building, which will house about 35,000 m² GFS, will be owned by Västfastigheter and its main operations will focus on administration for the Västra Götaland region, especially Sahlgrenska University Hospital.
Building 2, over the street Per Dubbsgatan
The building, which will house about 10,000 m² GFS, will be owned by Vitartes. Its main operations will focus on common services for the other buildings and it will partially serve as strategic joint facility for the adjacent properties.
Building 3, at Medicinareberget
The building, which will house about 35,000 m² GFS and be owned by Vitartes, will mainly provide premises for activities relating to healthcare, academia, service and business with a link to research and education.
Building 4, at Medicinareberget
The building, which will house about 35,000 m² GFS and be owned by Akademiska Hus, will mainly provide premises for activities relating to academia, service and business with a link to research and education.