After more than a year of negotiations, the Indian River Hospital District has executed a 20-year lease-to-own agreement with the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, known as VCOM, to develop a Vero Beach medical education campus and eventually a residency program on five acres adjacent to Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital.
The parcel at 1110 35th Lane is best known as the former longtime offices of the Visiting Nurse Association. It includes a three-story building constructed in 1987, plus almost all the vacant land next to the building between 11th Drive and the curve of 35th Lane.
A three-minute walk from the hospital, the 43,770-square-foot building, though old and in disrepair, is the ideal spot to educate medical students and residents who will train under Cleveland Clinic’s physicians.
The lease, which begins on Oct. 1, includes a timeline for VCOM’s progress.
To fulfill the district’s requirements, VCOM must establish a campus on the site for third- and fourth-year medical students by Oct. 1, 2026. Then VCOM must establish a fully accredited four-year medical school in Vero by Oct. 1, 2027. A residency program for VCOM graduates at Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital must be in place by Oct. 1, 2030. Along with those goals, VCOM must make the promised physical improvements to the existing building and grounds at its own expense, in lieu of rent.
After these benchmarks are reached, VCOM may exercise its option to purchase the property. That option was the reason why negotiations took more than a year to conclude, as VCOM wanted to buy the property outright, and the hospital district wanted assurances that VCOM was invested for the long haul in Vero Beach, and that Cleveland Clinic was committed to supporting the VCOM program, before giving up the title to valuable taxpayer-owned real estate.
VCOM will not pay rent for the first 10 years, but the school’s leadership has committed to spend a minimum of $5 million in renovations and additions during that time period. For the hospital district, it’s an investment which will hopefully reap rewards as new doctors choose to remain in Vero.
“We are thrilled to partner with Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital to bring VCOM to Vero Beach,” said Frank Isele, Executive Director of the Indian River County Hospital District. “This strategic initiative will not only support the growth of medical education in our area but will also strengthen the local healthcare workforce, ultimately benefiting the entire community.”
Dozens of third- and fourth-year medical school students are already getting clinical experience in Vero, both through mentoring at Cleveland Clinic and at in the trenches at the busy Treasure Coast Community Health clinics, filling the gap left by numerous doctors retiring or switching over to more lucrative concierge medical practices.
“Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital currently serves as the primary core teaching hospital for VCOM medical students on the Treasure Coast,” said Rick Rothman, MD, Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital. “We are excited about this collaboration between partners who are passionate about improving access to healthcare for the residents of Indian River County.”
Headquartered at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg, Va., VCOM has campuses has in Spartanburg, S.C., Auburn, Ala. and Monroe, La. Those campuses enroll 50 to 60 Florida students per year. More than 400 VCOM graduates practice medicine in Florida.
In its 23-year history, VCOM has had a good track record for producing the types of doctors communities like Vero need most, with more than 60 percent serving either in rural or under-served communities, or in primary care, or both.
“Our partnership with Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital and VCOM reflects our shared vision of transforming healthcare access in our community,” said Indian River County Hospital District Chair Marybeth Cunningham.
“By bringing an educational facility from a renowned medical school to Vero Beach, we are investing in the future of our healthcare system and ensuring that our community has access to top-tier medical care for generations to come,” she said.
VCOM Director of Communications Cindy Rawlins said last week that there are no plans for student housing on the leased property, but a presentation made to the hospital district previously did include a residents’ lounge where students could rest or study between shifts or when on-call at Cleveland Clinic.