New four-story garage to significantly increase parking at Christiana Hospital

Construction begins June 27 on a four-level, 700-space parking garage for patients and visitors on the Christiana Hospital campus, directly at the main entrance to the hospital. Planned in consultation with Christiana Hospital’s Patient and Family Advisory Committee, the garage is expected to open in June 2017, increasing access and convenience for patients and families.

“The decision to build this new garage speaks directly to our commitment to increasing access to care and creating an exceptional experience for our patients and visitors,” said Sharon Kurfuerst, Ed.D., OTR/L, FACHE, FAOTA, FABC, senior vice president, Health Services Operations. “This garage will increase patient and visitor parking on campus as close as you can get to the front door. This is, without question, the safest, most ideal location for the convenience of patients and visitors.”

The new garage, on the current site of Lot B, will complement the architectural design and brick façade of the hospital and will feature a covered walkway to the main entrance, said Patrick Fugeman, vice president, Design and Construction.

The garage’s “flat-plate” design eliminates parking on sloping ramps, and energy-efficient LED lighting will enhance comfort and safety. As another added convenience, campus shuttles and DART buses will be able to pull directly into the garage to drop off and pick up passengers.

Amenities for patients and visitors during the garage project will minimize disruption:

• Free valet service for patients and visitors expands from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays; valet service closed on Sundays.
• Consistent, reliable courtesy shuttles transport guests from clearly marked shuttle stops at Lots B and C to the main entrance and The Center for Heart & Vascular Health (E-Tower) entrance.
• Self-park: Free patient and visitor parking will continue to be available in Lot A near the Women and Children’s building, parts of Lot B and in Lot C, in front of the hospital near the Ammon Center. Courtesy shuttles will circle Lots B and C frequently to bring you directly to the main entrance and The Center for Heart & Vascular Health (E-Tower) entrance. Look for designated, clearly marked shuttle stops.
• Handicapped parking: Drivers or passengers relying on handicapped parking are encouraged to use our free valet service at the main entrance during construction. For those who prefer to self-park, handicapped spaces are designated in Lots A and C.
• Lots remain open for patients and visitors entering Medical Arts Pavilions 1 and 2, the Christiana Surgicenter and the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute.

Christiana Hospital’s Patient and Family Advisory Committee provided valuable insight about both the need for a garage and in determining its location.

“As former patients, family members and employees ourselves, advisers are the voice of the patient in many types of important decisions, including this new parking garage,” said adviser Maureen Starr, a retiree and former patient, who comes from a family of Christiana Care employees. “We all agree that this garage has been needed for a long time.”

The Christiana Care Board of Directors approved the dual-phase parking project in July 2015. The garage is part of an approved record plan with New Castle County, which also included the future construction of the Women & Children’s transformation project and the newly built employee parking deck at Lot F opening June 9.

“As the Christiana Hospital campus expands, additional surface parking is simply no longer practical,” said Robert Mulrooney, vice president, Facilities and Services. “We are very appreciative of the Board’s support to be able to move forward with offering convenient, free garage parking to our patients and visitors as close as possible to the main hospital entrance.

“The temporary inconvenience of construction will lead to a long-term solution that will help us better serve patients and visitors for years to come. The extraordinary people of Christiana Care have done this before, and we can do it again. That is The Christiana Care Way.”

Employees will play a key role in ensuring that disruptions are minimal during construction of the new patient and visitor garage. Employees will help by parking only in designated employee spaces — including the new parking deck at Lot F — and by avoiding being dropped off or picked up at the main hospital or E-Tower entrances.

• Approved alternative employee drop-off and pick-up locations are:
• Ambulance entrance between E-Tower and the Emergency Department.
• Entrance next to Textiles at the bottom of the fire lane.
• Lot F entrance.
• Ambulance entrance next to the MRI.
• MAP 2 employee entrance.

Employees visiting the Christiana Hospital campus for meetings and events, including those in the John H. Ammon Medical Education Center, are reminded to park only in designated employee lots and not to park in patient and visitor lots.

Follow progress and to learn more at http://www.christianacare.org/parking.