On a chilly morning in mid-December 2021, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center officials joined with major donors and politicians in Amherst to slice special shovels into a ceremonial pile of dirt to kick off construction on one of the institution’s largest expansions in recent years.
It was a day of smiles, though those grins were hidden beneath face masks – a requirement for the event about 18 months into the Covid-19 pandemic.
Now, the masks are off, and that ceremonial pile of dirt is the nearly complete $23 million Roswell Park Scott Bieler Amherst Center at 203 Park Club Lane – the cancer center’s first new-build outside of its sprawling downtown Buffalo campus.
Named after major Roswell Park donor Bieler, CEO of West Herr Automotive Group, the two-story, 30,000-square-foot structure with an eye-grabbing exterior visible from the I-290 is scheduled to open Sept. 11, according to the cancer center’s website.
“We’re excited about the finishing touches underway now as we get ready to greet our first patients at the Roswell Park Scott Bieler Amherst Center in a few weeks,” said Roswell Park spokesperson Annie Deck-Miller, who declined further comment until the building opens.
For Roswell Park, the new center is an important part of its plan to adapt to the changing health care market, grow its offerings and expand its reach.
It brings Roswell closer to a big part of its patient base, adding services in Amherst at a time when more than two of every five of its patients live north of Buffalo.
It also enhances Roswell’s outpatient services as the health care industry shifts more care out of the hospital.
On a recent tour of the structure with building owner and developer Ciminelli Real Estate Corp., which officially started project construction in spring 2022, technicians from various medical equipment companies were busy with installation and set up of several millions of dollars’ worth of imaging technology.
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