Hospital completes $126 million expansion amid pandemic

Like most health care systems of its size and scope, BayCare, headquartered in Clearwater, has an ongoing master-planning process for its many hospitals in the Tampa Bay region. That means expansion and renovation strategy is made years in advance and — surprise, surprise — simply can’t always easily account for disruptions like a global pandemic. 

In the case of St. Joseph’s Hospital, at 3001 W. Martin Luther King Blvd., Tampa, BayCare began to plan to expand the facility in 2016, and ground was broken in 2018 for the $126 million project. But the COVID-19 crisis added a sense of urgency to the project, led by Orlando-based general contractor Robins & Morton and highlighted by a new six-story tower, 90 private patient rooms and a pedestrian bridge, spanning Martin Luther King Blvd., that offers safe passage to and from St. Joseph’s Women’s Hospital across the street.