Sarasota Memorial plans $82.5M rehab center at Venice hospital

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is moving forward with plans for a new rehabilitation center at its Venice campus expected to open in early 2028.

After the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board authorized $82.5 million for the project last month, Sarasota Memorial in October selected architect Gresham Smith and general contractor DeAngelis Diamond to design and build the four-story rehab pavilion. Construction will take approximately two years, according to a statement.

Spanning 83,000 square feet, the pavilion will provide both inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services. Outpatient rehabilitation therapy and administrative spaces will occupy the first floor. The second and third floors will be dedicated to inpatient rehabilitation, with 50 private patient suites, advanced therapy gyms, therapy tools and mobility-training areas. There will also be spaces designed to replicate real-life environments, including a car, grocery store, apartment and kitchen, to support recovery and independent living. The fourth floor will be shelled to allow for future expansion, while parking in front of the facility will be reconfigured but preserved to accommodate the new building.

“This pavilion reflects our long-term commitment to providing comprehensive rehabilitation for people of our community,” Sarasota Memorial Vice President of Post-Acute & Rehabilitation Services Maria DeCarlo says in the statement. “It will mirror the nationally recognized programs and amenities at our Sarasota campus while offering care closer to home to residents in the growing south county community.”

Since opening in 2017, the Rehabilitation Pavilion at Sarasota Memorial Hospital’s Sarasota campus has also been operating at or near capacity, according to the statement. It opened with 44 beds, grew to 54 beds in 2018, increased to 60 beds in 2022 and is poised to expand again; the hospital board approved $5.6 million last month to add seven more beds, bringing the total to 67. Officials expect the Sarasota expansion to commence in spring 2026, with the new wing opening in early 2027.

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System handles nearly 2 million patient visits a year. It includes two full-service hospitals in Sarasota and Venice, freestanding emergency rooms in Lakewood Ranch and North Port, a cancer institute, rehabilitation hospital, behavioral health hospital, skilled nursing facility and a network of outpatient centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices. It had nearly $1.88 billion in operating revenue in 2024.