The Building for the Third Century of MGH Medicine

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	Clinics Demolition: Fruit Street closure on day shift impacting employee parking and pedestrian traffic on Saturday, Jan. 19th to Monday, Jan. 21Saturday, January 19 Parking: Continued demolition of the Clinics Building will require the construction of a safety zone around the demolition site. This will result in a few changes in parking and traffic flow :1. Fruit Street will be closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic from 7:15 am to 2:00 pm . 2. Day-shift employee parking will be shifted to the Yawkey Garage during this period. 3. Patients and visitors will park in the Fruit and Parkman Street garages.MGH employees driving to work between 6:00 am and 7:15 am on Saturday, January 19, will be directed to park in the Yawkey Garage. The entrances to the Fruit and Parkman Street garages will be closed. Employees will have their MGH Photo ID access badge programmed to work on the Yawkey Building card readers. There will be "directed parking" in the Yawkey Garage that day. MGH Police, Security, and Outside Services staff will be directing drivers into the next available space. Employees arriving at the Yawkey Garage at approximately 7:15 am will be directed by members of the Police, Security, and Outside Services staff into the Fruit Street Garage. Pedestrian Route: Fruit Street will be closed to all pedestrian traffic from 7:15 am to 2:00 pm on Saturday, January 19. All pedestrians walking between the main lobby and the Yawkey Center, Proton Center, MEEI, and the Charles/MGH MBTA station will be directed to the covered Yawkey Path down North Grove Street and through the Fruit Street Garage. Sunday, January 20 Normal operations, no changes due to construction. Monday, January 21 Demolition activity on this holiday will require closing down Fruit Street between Yawkey Way and the MEEI building only. This will not affect parking access, or egress to any of the garages. MGH employees should park in the Fruit and Parkman Street garages as they usually do on a holiday. Pedestrians traveling to and from MEEI will not be able to use the Fruit Street sidewalk during construction and will be directed to use the Yawkey Path.For questions on traffic control, please contact Joe Crowley, Senior Manager, Outside Services at 4-3786. Clinics, VBK and Tilton: Demolition begins in November Although street-level observers may not notice a marked change to the Clinics, Vincent Burnham Kennedy (VBK) and Tilton buildings, demolition of the buildings has begun with the removal of the Clinics Building roof and the dismantling of the two-story rear segment of the VBK Building. This early phase of the buildings' dismantling launches the approximately five-month demolition project. The three buildings are being taken down in 15 phases to prepare the site for the construction of a new clinical facility, the Building for the Third Century (B3C), which is slated to be completed in 2011 — the hospital's bicentennial. To carefully demolish the Clinics Building roof, work will take place during two shifts, from 6 am to 2 pm and 8 pm to 6 am. To minimize possible impact to regular hospital activities from this process, much of the daytime roof work will be confined to interior roof areas, and edge work and other more hazardous operations will occur during overnight hours. Demolition of all three buildings is scheduled to be completed in April 2008. Members of the Thrive B3C Operations Group have coordinated with MGH colleagues and consultants to prevent and minimize possible disturbances to hospital operations. New pedestrian walkway, “Yawkey Path,” opens Monday, October 15 Beginning Oct. 15, patients, visitors, MGH staff and employees are strongly advised to use a new, covered, safe, and well-lit pathway called the “Yawkey Path” along North Grove Street when walking between the Main Hospital Entrance and the Yawkey Center for Outpatient Care. Use of the Fruit Street sidewalk is strictly limited due to the danger of exiting car traffic from the Fruit Street garage and heavy construction traffic. The only exception applies to MGH staff members transporting patients on stretchers to and from the Francis H. Burr Proton Therapy Center. Patients and staff should also use the Yawkey Path when traveling between the Proton Center and the Main Hospital Entrance. While the new building is under construction for the next four years, the Yawkey Path is the safest conduit for patients, visitors, and employees when walking to and from the Main Hospital Entrance and the Yawkey Center. Click here for a pedestrian map. MGH patient discharge and drop-offs relocate effective Aug. 20 Beginning Aug. 20, between the hours of 6 am to 8 pm Monday through Friday, patients awaiting pick-up from family, friends or chair car services will exit via the Wang Lobby lower level. This change applies to all patients being discharged from inpatient units as well as those leaving treatment or procedure appointments such as from the electrophysiology lab, catheterization lab, radiation oncology, dialysis, interventional radiology and endoscopy. This change does not apply to patients with appointments in the Yawkey Outpatient Center. If patients require wheelchair assistance, MGH Volunteers are available to assist. The recommended wheelchair route to the Wang Lobby is through the Main Corridor on the first floor to the Wang service elevators, which are located behind the front desk in the Main Lobby of White Building. MGH Volunteer Services staff will be available to assist patients awaiting pick-up in the Wang Lobby. It is important to note that patients leaving the hospital at all other times - from 8 pm to 6 am Monday through Friday and all day Saturdays, Sundays and holidays - can exit the hospital through the Main Lobby. To help the process, MGH staff and employees should remind patients that unless they are being transported by ambulance, they should exit the hospital via the Wang Lobby. Additionally, staff and employees should recommend that patients' family members park in the Fruit Street or Parkman Garages during the weekdays.For more information about the patient discharge and drop-off relocation, contact Angela Marquez at pager 15167 or amarquez1@partners.org.
	VBK Building Closes Monday, July 16 The Vincent Burnham Kennedy (VBK) Building will close permanently at the end of the day Monday, July 16. MGH staff and the general public will no longer have access to this building. The last departments in the VBK will vacate floors 6 through 9 this weekend, and the lower floors have already closed. The VBK elevator will be closed to the public beginning Tuesday morning, July 17. Interior construction barriers are being put up to block the entrance to the VBK floors from the White and Ellison corridors as preparations for building demolition continue. Any questions should be directed to Brad Seamans in the Planning and Construction office at (617) 726-2442.

	FLOORS CLOSING IN VINCENT, CLINICS AND TILTON BUILDINGS ON SUNDAY, JUNE 17 Phase 1 of vacating Clinics, Vincent Burnham Kennedy, and Tilton buildings will be completed this weekend, in preparation for clearing the site for the new Building for the Third Century. On Monday, June 18, contractors will begin phased salvage and interior demolition work on closed floors. In mid-July, the remaining building floors and first floor corridors will close, completing Phase 2. The following floors will be closed to all staff and visitors beginning June 18: Clinics basement and levels 2 and 3 Vincent basement and levels 2, 3, 4 and 5 All Tilton floors The Clinics 1 corridor will remain open through to MEEI until mid July. The Vincent 1 corridor will remain open to the elevator lobby, and floors 6, 7 8 and 9 remain open until mid July. For more information, contact Brad Seamans, of the MGH Planning Office, at (617) 726-2442.