In an ever-crowded senior living market, Grande Vita will clearly stand out. The BioCity Enterprises campus isn’t a static building, it’s an ever-evolving community based on the needs of its residents.
“You can come live in a condo, you have independent living, assisted living, you have memory care and you have hospice; so you have the continuum of care, all the way through,” says Kelly Copeland, COO of BioCity Enterprises. “And then we have an urgent care, we have a lab and we have about 15 other businesses, including about 10 restaurants.”
Grande Vita, A BioCity Campus, broke ground on a 20-acre, multi-use, campus-style community at Crismon Road and Hampton Avenue in Mesa. This $300 million project by Khangura Development, also celebrated the ribbon-cutting for the new Residence Inn by Marriott, which opens this month and was the first phase of the Grande Vita development
Copeland’s vision of the BioCity Campus will allow seniors to “age in place”. The concept is designed to create a virtuous circle in which clinical healthcare delivery and research & development co-exist on the same campus to deliver state-of-the-art medical care and translational research in an environment in which society’s brightest and best want to live, work and innovate. Grande Vita will create an estimated 476 jobs and $38.6 million in wages.
“The 500 new jobs is the easy part of this, but in reality, this is about starting to change,” says Bill Jabjiniak, Director of Economic Development for the City of Mesa. “This is the growth of healthcare, this is aging in place and it’s always great to have a new hotel product. There are so many different dimensions. What we like about the assisted living, the medical component, it’s all very walkable.”
Construction on the site will begin in August with the digging of three, three-story underground parking structures for the campus. When general contractor Brycon Construction completes the project in 2022, the campus will encompass nearly 700,000 square feet of independent and assisted living, hotel rooms, multiple dining options, medical offices, a luxury tower and luxury condos, nursing school and rehab clinic spread out over 20 acres.
“The difference between us and everyone else who is doing this is we own all of the facets of the campus,” Copeland said. “Grande Vita is the branding for everything. So the 10 restaurants, they’re Grande Vita restaurants, so the menu is our menu. The pharmacy is our pharmacy and the lab is our lab.”
Mesa Mayor John Giles emphasizes Grande Vita’s positive impact on the City of Mesa. “Grande Vita is the future of senior living,” Mayor John Giles said. “The concept of having residential, entertainment, medical and other quality of life amenities in a single campus along with medical research and hundreds of jobs is how my generation will comfortably age in place.”
BioCity plans to incorporate a high-end resort-style design into Grande Vita, complete with reflecting pools, pergolas, fountains, and green roofs. With the majority of parking underground, the campus will feel less like a medical facility and more like a university, with winding pedestrian walkways and bridges. The integrated independent living facility will provide senior Mesa residents with unique housing opportunities, skilled services, and recreational activities. Conveniently located to the north is the Mountain Vista Medical Center, making the site an ideal location.
“Grande Vita will allow its residents to age in place, in a community that feels like home,” says Copeland. “They will get the opportunity to be around the people and places that are familiar to them while also providing them with quality care.”
For the 11,500 people turning 65 each day, communities like Grande Vita will provide a comfortable lifestyle and peace of mind of receiving top-of-the-line healthcare services.
“If you look at the demographics, you’ll see that the senior population is already here,” Jabjiniak said. “There will be more coming. This project is really a vision that is unique and it’s not just another senior living facility by itself, it’s integrated.”
Grande Vita is located in Mesa, bordered by US 60 Superstition Highway, making other parts of the Valley easily accessible.
