Middlesex County unveils plan for $750M cancer hospital

NEW BRUNSWICK — A $750 million free-standing Cancer Pavilion has been announced in a public-private partnership that will feature New Jersey’s only oncology inpatient hospital.

RWJBarnabas Health, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Middlesex County government, the New Brunswick Development Corp. and the city of New Brunswick are all involved in the plans for a 12-story structure that will span more than 510,000 square feet.

The facility will include on-site chemotherapy and radiation therapies as well as research labs, which means quicker turnaround of scientific findings "from laboratory bench to patient bedside," according to a news release from the county.

Freeholder Director Ron Rios said Wednesday that the county would invest $25 million into the project, as the facility would help drive economic expansion and growth, allowing new job opportunities and career paths.

Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey Director Steven Libutti said the pandemic has helped emphasize a critical need for keeping cancer patients as protected as possible.

The pavilion is planned for 165 Somerset St., which means that the Lincoln Annex elementary school will be razed and rebuilt at a new site at 50 Jersey Ave.

As previously reported in February by NJ.com, the site across from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital that has housed the school since 2016 was identified as the best spot for the pavilion by DEVCO.

New Brunswick Board of Education finalized the land deal at its meeting on April 28.

The concept of the cancer pavilion project was first announced nearly a year ago when ground was expected to be broken on this summer, before the ongoing pandemic upended so many timelines.

“This will be our greatest accomplishment to date,” according to DEVCO President Chris Paladino, who also noted the project hits every touchstone at a time when everybody is talking about healthcare, access to healthcare and jobs as top priorities.

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