ROCHESTER, MN—Minnesota’s largest private employer, the Mayo Clinic, announced this week that it plans to stick around, with a $5 billion economic development initiative dubbed Destination Medical Center to transform the city into one of the most modern health campuses in the world
The famous health system said the center plan of public and private investment is estimated to include approximately $3.5 billion in new Mayo-financed capital investments on its Rochester campus over the next 20 years, combined with an estimated $2.1 billion in additional leveraged private investment.
Dr. John Noseworthy, president and CEO of the system, said at a press conference Thursday that the clinic, which employs more than 30,000 people in the state, is constantly getting encouraged by other U.S. cities and foreign countries to consider expansions outside of Minnesota. "While Mayo Clinic is also evaluating plans for additional expansion outside Minnesota in future years, we believe Rochester can and should remain Mayo's global headquarters and a premier destination for medical care well into the future, assuming we can attract the additional private business investments and finance the necessary public infrastructure needed to support an expansion of this scale," he said. In interviews, Noseworthy has not been specific about what real estate projects are expected, but has said the clinic is working with the city on master plan designs.
In addition to the Mayo-financed and non-Mayo private investments, it is anticipated that a total of $585 million in public infrastructure costs will be required to support the DMC expansion over the 20-year investment timeline, bringing the total center investment in Minnesota to over $5 billion. The clinic is working with the city and state for incentives to help pay for the project, and is seeking more than $500 million in bonds from the state for the infrastructure.