A vacant building is getting a major facelift and some new tenants thanks to a collaborative effort between St. Ignatius High School and St. Vincent Charity Medical Center.

"This is a building we purchased a year and a half or two years ago," says Richard Klingshirn, vice president and chief financial officer for St. Ignatius, of the property at 2905 Lorain Avenue. "We didn't really have any plans at that point in time."

The school purchased the building, the previous incarnation of which Klingshirn describes as "multi-purpose commercial," mostly because of it's proximity to the St. Ignatius campus. During a subsequent discussion between Fr. William Murphy, the school's president, and St. Vincent's president and CEO, Dr. David Perse, the idea to put the 3,600-square-foot space to use as a doctor's office was launched. The two entities eventually agreed to a five-year lease.

Klingshirn notes that convenience was a factor, with St. Vincent's main campus at 2351 East 22^nd Street being just over two miles from the new building, which is also on RTA's popular 22 route.

"For patients," says Klingshirn, "it's much better public transportation service with the number 22 and other buses right there."

Four doctors will be moving into the space: Dr. Joy Marshall, family practice; Dr. Jeremy Perse, podiatry; Dr. George Friedhoff, sports medicine; and Dr. Muhammad Zahra, cardiology. The doctors are expected to start seeing patients in the new location on Jan. 6, with a community open house to follow. A date for the open house has not been set; however, St. Vincent's Wendy Hoke, vice president of marketing and communications, expects it to be sometime in January.

"St. Vincent's and St. Ignatius are basically splitting the cost of renovating the building," says Klingshirn. " I won't give specifics," he adds, "but the total cost of project is in excess of one million dollars." Westlake Reed Leskosky is the architectural team on the project.

The building required a complete renovation, including all new electrical and plumbing. "The four walls and the roof were there," says Klingshirn, "everything else was redone."

But the best part, says Klingshirn, is the improvement to this tiny slice of Lorain Avenue. He describes the structure as previously looking like a "building you would build out of Legos—a very blocky looking building."

The addition of expansive windows and a smart façade have changed that.

"(The architects) took a really basic building and turned it into something very attractive," says Klingshirn. "Compared to what it was, it really spruces up Lorain Avenue nicely. It just dresses up that little 80- to 100-feet of frontage."