TAMPA, Fla. — The University of South Florida will celebrate opening the new USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute in downtown Tampa with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.
With 395,000 square feet, the new building is 13 stories and will have room for up to 1,800 students, faculty, researchers and staff.
Classes for the medical program will begin on January 13.
Heart institute researchers will start moving into the facility in February.
The new building will also house a PA program and a pharmacy program.
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USF Health will share this new facility with Tampa General Hospital for collaborative efforts focused on cardiology, urgent care and imaging.
School leaders say the facility will help USF attract the brightest students and top researchers to Tampa Bay.
Initial plans for a new medical school facility began in 2011 with a $20 million gift from Carol and Frank Morsani, then shifted to downtown Tampa in 2014 to align with Jeff Vinik’s and Strategic Property Partners’ redevelopment of the Water Street district of downtown Tampa.
Project leaders believe this could transform downtown and be a catalyst for growth, development and business in the Water Street district.
The project is paid for through a combination of state funds and philanthropic support.
