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ATTACHMENT 2 <br />2. Project Description <br />21. Partners & Actors <br />The Vita development is an initiative launched by the Charter Oak Communities in partnership with <br />the Stamford Hospital, the City of Stamford and the West Side community, including residents, <br />business owners, and the West Side Neighbourhood Revitalization Zone (NRZ).This partnership is <br />also being supported by a team of consultants, which includes Gamble Associates, Madden Planning <br />Group, Development Strategies, Reisen Design Associates, Tripp Umbach and Balance Health <br />Communications. <br />The Stamford Hospital and Charter Oak Communities first worked together in 2010 when the <br />hospital needed to build a new primary inpatient facility, while Charter Oak had to replace an <br />obsolete public housing project. The two organizations chose to swap the two properties, without <br />any monetary exchange. Since the exchange, the organizations have also collaborated on obtaining <br />Village Commercial District zoning; creating the Fairgate Farm; and obtaining federal grant funds to <br />refine the Vita plan. <br />2.2 Strategy and Approach <br />In the late 2000s, Stamford experienced a spark of health related investments including the Fairgate <br />Farm, the Optimus / Fairgate Community Health Center (a federally qualified health center); <br />new housing developments; and new health programs created by the Stamford Hospital. In 2010, <br />Stillwater Avenue was rezoned as a Village Commercial District32, better enabling the city to attract <br />an array of consumer -based health facilities and services and allowing it to position itself as a <br />district." <br />A pivotal component of establishing the Vita District is the hospital expansion. In 2012, construction <br />of a $450 million expansion of the Stamford Hospital began. This expansion was made possible by a <br />Sustainable Communities Challenge grant provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban <br />Development. The addition will be an 11 -story - 647,000 square foot building with main floor retail <br />space and a focus on specialty health care. It has been designed according to the P1aneTree principles, <br />to create a calm and healing environment 34 Among its many programs, the hospital will also house a <br />Center for Integrative Medicine & Wellness to provide an alternative approach to patient treatment, <br />by considering physical, emotional, mental, social, spiritual, and environmental influences "The <br />development is also creating public green space and parks throughout the hospital campus and <br />along the site. For the first time since the hospital's opening in 1913, it will have an entry facing the <br />neighbourhoods to the south, connecting it with that community. The hospital expansion will be <br />completed in 2016. <br />In 2013, the consultant team prepared a strategic plan and market assessment, gathering insights <br />from community meetings and interviews with local businesses and residents; design studies; market <br />analysis; evaluation of commercial space and retail opportunities; and examination of the job outlook <br />in the healthcare industry. <br />The Nom Practice Y s-A-52 <br />