University of Michigan Health buying former Kmart headquarters in Troy

University of Michigan Health is expanding into Troy, with plans to purchase the former Kmart headquarters.

The University of Michigan Board of Regents approved the purchase of the 7.28 acre vacant lot on Thursday. The land will cost U of M $4.42 million.

The Kmart facility shuttered in 2006, and the space has been vacant since then. 

UM-Health plans to build a medical facility that will focus on both advanced specialty and diagnostic services, according to Dr. Marschall S. Runge, the CEO of Michigan Medicine, dean of the U-M Medical School, and executive vice president of medical affairs for the University of Michigan. This will include multidisciplinary cancer care.

The vacant land where the Kmart HQ stood in Troy

"We are thrilled to announce our plans for a long term presence and commitment to patients in Oakland County, in keeping with our efforts to create a statewide network of care that allows Michiganders the ability to receive our world-class care close to home," Runge said. 

Dr. David Miller, the president of UM-health, said the new facility will bring the health system's services closer to Metro Detroiters by removing the need to travel to Ann Arbor for care.

"We believe this new investment will bring our U-M Health expertise to a whole new community of patients, providing easier access for metro Detroit residents to our nationally renowned clinical expertise and innovation," he said.

Other University of Michigan Health projects currently in the works include the 12-story D. Dan and Betty Kahn Health Care Pavilion, set to open in 2025 in Ann Arbor, and the Ypsilanti Health Center in downtown Ypsilanti, set to open in late 2024.

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