Cancer Patient Housing Project Under Way in South Lake Union

SEATTLE, Jan. 10 A six-story, 80-room, motel-style housingproject designed for out-of-town cancer patients of the Seattle Cancer CareAlliance today broke ground in the South Lake Union neighborhood. When the$22.9 million facility opens in the spring of 2009, it will join the nearbyPete Gross House in providing out-of-town SCCA cancer patients with anadditional option for where to stay during short- and long-term treatments.

The yet-unnamed building will help fill significant lodging demand forpatients and their caregivers during various forms of cancer treatment, whichcan last up to six weeks. Local hotels have been the only other choices forout-of-town patients aside from the 70-unit Pete Gross House, which is onlyavailable to patients who are undergoing bone-marrow or stem-cell transplantsat the SCCA. The Pete Gross House has a large waiting list because the highlyregarded transplantation program draws patients nationally andinternationally. Transplant treatment typically lasts several months.

"By providing additional patient housing options, the SCCA is improvingaccess to high-quality, patient-focused care for patients seeking theexpertise and technologies of a regional cancer center," said Norm Hubbard,executive vice president.

The building will be located on the southeast corner of Pontius AvenueNorth and John Street and will be about 63,400 square feet minus parking. Therooms will rent at a competitive market rate of $85 nightly. Each unit willmeasure about 500 square feet and include two beds, a full bath, a microwaveand a small refrigerator.

Patient rooms will take up the top four stories of the building. Thesecond floor will have common spaces -- kitchen, teen room, workout room,library, all-ages recreation room and an outdoor courtyard. The street-levelfirst floor will house retail space and administrative offices. Undergroundparking will accommodate 40 vehicles, and shuttle service will providetransportation to the SCCA outpatient clinic building, University ofWashington Medical Center and Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center.Construction will include many "green" elements to conserve energy andresources with the goal of meeting LEED (Leadership in Energy andEnvironmental Design) certification standards.

Partners in construction and operation include Weinstein A/U architects,general contractor Walsh Construction and Pinnacle Management, which will runthe building when it opens.

About Seattle Cancer Care Alliance

Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, established in 1998, unites the adult andpediatric cancer-care services of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, UWMedicine and Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center. A major focus ofSCCA is to speed the transfer of new diagnostic and treatment techniques fromthe research setting to the patient bedside while providing premier,patient-focused cancer care. Patients who come to SCCA receive the latestresearch-based cancer therapies as well as cutting-edge treatments for anumber of non-malignant diseases under development by its partnerorganizations. SCCA has three clinical-care sites: an outpatient clinic on theFred Hutchinson campus, a pediatric-inpatient unit at Children's and anadult-inpatient unit at UW Medical Center. For more information about SCCA,visit http://www.seattlecca.org.

Media Contact:

Dean Forbes, (206) 667-2896

SOURCE Seattle Cancer Care Alliance