Council approves Mayo's plans for a new loading dock downtown

The Rochester City Council has signed off on plans for Mayo Clinic to build a new loading dock next to Methodist Hospital.

The one-story structure, to be located at the intersection of First Avenue NW and West Center Street, will replace an existing loading dock located near its proton beam facility. That building is being razed to make way for a $200 million expansion of Mayo’s proton beam program.

Von Peterson, an architect with TSP, Inc., told the council they are not anticipating the new facility will cause any additional traffic or noise-related disruptions than the existing docking station.

“Part of the reason for the enclosed facility is so a lot of those operations that might be disturbing — the loading and unloading, the dumpster, the trash compactor — all of those are going to be located inside the facility in order to provide another layer of limiting disruption,” said Peterson.

The new facility will include an underground tunnel connecting the loading dock with Methodist, as well as a temporary park space to the south of the structure. That space, however, won’t be ready until 2025.

Working with city staff, Mayo also made a number of enhancements to its original design, including making the building more aesthetically pleasing and adding pedestrian features, city officials said.

Moving forward, Deputy City Administrator Cindy Steinhauser said she sees additional opportunities for community engagement on the project, particularly when it comes to the use of the alley near First Street NW.

Prior to council discussion, one member of the public commented on the need to bring members of the nearby mosque into the conversation.

“We see that as a really great opportunity … in the future to engage neighbors, particularly the members of the mosque community, in saying: how can activate this alley and make it a space that could enhance some of the programming you have?,” commented Steinhauser.

The new loading dock will be built on the site of the former Days Inn, which was demolished in 2018. Mayo spent $10 million to acquire the property.

Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.

Cover rendering by TSP, Inc.