Medical plaza starts construction in Mayfield Twp.

Photo by JEFF HOGAN Ground was officially broken Wednesday on the Lapeer Medical Plaza, a 14,478-square-foot facility that will house four health care businesses, with completion set for next spring. Gathered for the occasion were (left to right): David Thibodeau, owner of Thibodeau Physical Therapy; Dr. Michael Zielinski, owner of Lapeer Family & Urgent Care; and Dr. Rob Reye, a physician’s assistant at Lapeer Family & Urgent Care. MAYFIELD TWP. — Health care ought to be accessible, convenient and affordable to the residents of the greater Lapeer County area.

That’s the objective sought by Dr. Michael Zielinski, who on Wednesday broke ground on a state-ofthe art 14,478-square-foot medical office building at 1794 N. Lapeer (M-24) in Mayfield Township.

Located on four acres just south of the WMPC radio station, the Lapeer Medical Plaza is more than a medical complex to Zielinski — it’s the fulfillment of a goal and deep-seated conviction in how he wants to provide medical care to the residents in the community.

The Lapeer Medical Plaza in Mayfield Township is expected to open next spring. In an emotional introduction to the project, under a white tent on the construction site before his family, employees and representatives of the other tenants Zielinski said he wanted to offer patients “a one-stop” opportunity to obtain quality health care.

“I strongly believe health care needs to be about the patient and to provide the most streamlined and comprehensive care available,” said Zielinski, who has operated his practice, Lapeer Family & Urgent Care on Davison Road (east of Polar Palace), for the last five years.

Along with Lapeer Family & Urgent Care, the Lapeer Medical Plaza will also be the new home of Thibodeau Physical Therapy, Mid- Michigan Diagnostics and McLaren Laboratory, a division of McLaren Regional Medical Center. While overall occupancy is slated for spring, in order to meet a State of Michigan license requirement McLaren must be in the new building by around Feb. 14.

Thibodeau Physical Therapy is currently located on East Street in Lapeer. “We look forward to being in the Lapeer Medical Plaza with all of us under one roof. We thought it would be convenient for our patients to be in a new facility grouped with the other health care providers,” said owner David Thibodeau.

McLaren, said Zielinski, will offer CT scans and X-rays on site during all hours of operation. “The idea is to allow complete treatment to be performed in a single visit. Overall, this will allow patients to receive all the testing they need to provide a low-cost alternative to the emergency room,” said Zielinski, who has been caring for Lapeer County-area residents for the past 22 years.

The McLaren Laboratory also will provide a public blood draw station that will allow patients to have lab work done by any ordering physician.

Burton-based Mid- Michigan Diagnostics will be able to offer an array of specialized testing, including echocardiogram, ultrasound, carotid doppler, cardiac stress testing and EMG/nerve conduction.

Despite the sluggish local economy, Zielinski said his practice has experienced substantial growth over the past few years and has outgrown its current location, which prompted a move to a larger location. The new location will double the size of Lapeer Family & Urgent Care, “dramatically decreasing patient wait times, offering a more comfortable atmosphere and comprehensive care in one place,” Zielinski said.

“We will continue to serve our patients in both family practice as well as any urgent care needs. We will also be expanding our occupational medicine services, including pre-employment physicals and injury care,” Zielinski said.

Physician assistant Rob Reye, who has been with Lapeer Family & Urgent Care since 2007, also will continue his service at the clinic in both the family practice and urgent care areas. Other parttime professional staffers at the clinic include Dr. Rita Lang, DO, and emergency physicians from Genesys Hospital.

General contractor for the building project is Flint-based W. H. Hall Construction. In Lapeer, the company has recently built the new Dort Federal and ELGA credit unions, and also has the job to construct Lapeer Commons, a multi-use complex that is ready to be built on M-24 in Lapeer (south of new Taco Bell restaurant).

W.H. Hall Construction also built the Lapeer Public Safety complex on West Genesee.

The project, said builder Troy Hall, will be constructed to be environmentally friendly and will incorporate a lot of window space to maximize natural lighting. It will also use energy-efficient interior lighting systems and recycled building materials,