The Medical College of Wisconsin Center for Cancer Discovery

The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), located on the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center campus, recently completed construction of a state-of-the-art building designed as a hub for collaboration and innovation in cancer research. The Center for Cancer Discovery represents MCW’s long-term commitment to advancing groundbreaking research and developing lifesaving discoveries to reduce the impact of cancer for all patients.

The five-story, 161,000-square-foot facility features 53 laboratory spaces and 59 offices dedicated to cancer studies. Its main level includes 5,580 square feet of community space and a 400-seat auditorium. Skywalks connect the building to adjacent MCW facilities, including the Health Research Center (HRC) and the Translational and Biomedical Research Center (TBRC). A newly created courtyard between the buildings incorporates hardscape and landscape elements, providing a seamless transition from interior to exterior spaces while maintaining fire protection and building access.

GRAEF provided civil engineering services for site development to support the new facility. Existing utilities were analyzed for potential impacts and rerouted to accommodate the building footprint without disrupting service. Additional coordination ensured integration with campus infrastructure for electrical power, steam heating, and chilled water cooling. The project also required collaboration with an adjacent construction effort that shared overlapping limits, particularly in storm sewer, grading, and access areas.

Given the site’s significant grade changes, GRAEF designed hardscape solutions to provide vehicular access to the main entrance, ADA-compliant pedestrian routes to all building and courtyard entrances, and connectivity to campus roads and transit hubs.