Ohio State poised to launch $30 mil. expansion of VMC

The Veterinary Medical Center’s Enhancement and Expansion Project at Ohio State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine has raised approximately $8.5 million toward its $30 million goal. Despite the current gap in funds, the veterinary college’s dean, Lonnie King, DVM, hopes to break ground by the end of the year.

The college’s current veterinary medical center is more than 40 years old. Companion animal visits at the facility have increased 30 percent in the past five years. The university says demand for improvements in diagnostics, equipment and technology has created a “desperate” need for new facilities.The enhanced facility is designed to create a larger, friendlier reception area and add more examination rooms, update and expand the surgical suites and recovery rooms, and create enriched teaching and learning spaces. The new facility will also feature a special waiting area for feline patients, a larger intensive care unit and specialty services with their own treatment areas.

Still, the majority of the money to fund the project is yet to be raised. The college will seek a $10 million loan from the central university business office to be repaid with philanthropy and increases in operating income.

Last year, the university opened a new $2 million specialty and 24-hour emergency satellite clinic in Dublin, Ohio, to generate additional income. According to local news reports, the facility has fallen short of revenue projections by more than half. From July through December, the clinic lost $130,000 a month in revenue.