Howard University considers redeveloping its longtime hospital

Howard University is weighing whether to move its Level 1 trauma center hospital from its current site at 2041 Georgia Avenue NW in LeDroit Park to make way for new development. While the idea is still in the early stages, the site could be redeveloped in the coming years as part of the school’s master plan for its campus and follows other Howard real estate projects.

The concept was floated at the university’s community advisory committee meeting this past Monday and first reported on Twitter by D.C. resident Eric Fidler. Up to 3 million square feet of private development appears possible. The hospital sits on part of a roughly 15-acre plot of land that also includes Howard’s college of medicine and college of dentistry. The plot is near U Street NW and Shaw, both neighborhoods that have seen big projects in the past few years.

In a statement, Howard University says “these were preliminary concepts to begin a Master Planning dialogue and not a finalized plan.” “There are no plans in place to move the hospital at this time,” it added. The university’s board of trustees would need to approve any formal redevelopment proposal for the hospital, reports NBC4. The hospital was established in 1862 as the Freedman’s Hospital. It was built in converted barracks and served African Americans.