Rehab hospital buys land, will build $24M facility in Pinellas Park
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Feb 25, 2022

A Texas-based physical rehabilitation hospital company has purchased just over 6 acres in Pinellas Park, where it intends to open its fifth facility in Florida.

Everest Rehabilitation Hospital closed on the property on Gateway Centre Boulevard on Feb. 10 in a $1.7 million deal, according to documents filed with the county.

A news release said this would be a $24 million project that includes a 40,000-square-foot facility with 36 beds.

“The level of care in our acute rehabilitation hospital setting cannot be provided at other levels of care such as skilled nursing facilities,” Jay Quintana, Everest Rehabilitation CEO, said in a release. “The average length of stay at a comprehensive, inpatient rehabilitation hospital is one-third that of a typical stay at a skilled nursing facility. We provide one-to-one physical therapy, five to seven days a week, daily medical visits by rehabilitation physicians and a strong 24-hour-a-day nurse to patient ratio that contributes to optimal outcomes and the highest quality of care.”

Everest said its facilities include inpatient and outpatient physical therapy gyms, an outdoor mobility court, aqua therapy, a life skills training apartment, dining hall, in-house pharmacy and more.

Traditionally, the hospital serves patients who are recovering from a “stroke, brain injury, neurological conditions, trauma, spinal cord injury, speech impediments, amputation, pulmonary disease, orthopedic injury, Covid-19 and other medically complex conditions.”

The hospital is expected to create more than 100 jobs. There will be an estimated annual payroll of $5.59 million with an estimated annual salary of $54,265.

Everest has locations in Kissimmee, the Lakeland/Winter Haven area, West Palm Beach and Ocoee.

Nancy Surak, senior adviser and managing broker for Land Advisors Tampa Bay, brokered the deal on behalf of the seller Huntley Properties and Landholdings LLC. The acreage in the Gateway Business Center Park is just one of several parcels the seller has been petitioning since early 2020.

Surak said it has been a very “intentional and thoughtful” process as the seller attempts to find perfect fits for the area that will benefit the community and attract high-quality jobs.

“The Gateway area as a whole — whether for employment or multifamily opportunities — is just a good location,” Surak said. “Yes, there’s an availability of land here, but it’s also just a gem that a lot of people have historically passed over. But that’s not the case anymore. This is a really beautiful project and I think it’s going to be great for the overall community.”