HMH Breaks Ground on Nation’s First Health & Wellness Center at a Transit Hub

On Mar 8, 2024

Hackensack Meridian Health (HMH) today broke ground on the first health and wellness center in the nation to be located at a mass transit hub. The $200 million Metropark Station project in Woodbridge is expected to create 1,000 jobs for the region and provide access to comprehensive care to thousands of New Jersey, New York and Northeast residents each day.

“Once again, New Jersey is pioneering a new model for supporting our families and communities as we break ground on the first ever comprehensive healthcare facility located at a major transit hub,” said Gov. Phil Murphy. “This new Hackensack Meridian Health facility marks a major milestone both for the larger redevelopment of Metropark Station as well as in realizing our administration’s broader vision for the future of transportation and community health. I am pleased to join Hackensack Meridian Health today and applaud their continued work to provide vital health care to the people of New Jersey.”

The facility is part of a larger development of Metropark Station by DOR, a consortium led by Russo Development, that was awarded a $110 million tax credit grant. The impetus for the development came from Governor Murphy’s push to modernize transportation hubs throughout the state, making them multi-use locations for residential, office space, retail and restaurants, allowing people to live, work and play in one location.

When it opens next year, the HMH and Wellness Center will offer more than 60,000 square feet of healthcare services just steps from the mass transit hub. Services will include primary care, medical specialties, surgical specialties, a sports and spine center of excellence, advanced imaging, phlebotomy, rehabilitation services, a retail pharmacy, occupational health services and urgent care.

“HMH is committed to expanding access to quality healthcare, meeting patients where they are,” said Robert C. Garrett, CEO of Hackensack Meridian Health. “Approximately 60,000 people travel through Metropark Station each month as a hub for New Jersey Transit and Amtrak. Soon, these passengers will have access to quality care steps from their commute. The expanded, easy access is one of the major ways HMHis revolutionizing healthcare.”

The complex qualifies for the multi-use platform under the New Jersey Economic Development Authority’s ASPIRE program, which supports transformative development projects that incorporate community benefits such as those featured in this development: connecting people to healthcare more efficiently; stimulating mass transit use; and providing at least 20% low income housing.

“Convenient access to a wide array of medical services at a mass transit hub complements HMH’s efforts to address how social determinants of health are impacting health equity,” Garrett said. “This location will bring Hackensack Meridian’s best-in-class doctors and care to a location accessible to all, including those whose primary form of transportation is mass transit.”

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