Photo by Shawn Epps

Pearland sits less than 10 miles from the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical complex in the world. But as the city's population grows, leading health care providers have focused on Pearland as a prime location for new and expanded medical facilities, office space and administrative headquarters.

The new facilities will bring hundreds of jobs and first-class medical care to a city that has grown from 37,600 residents in 2000 to more than 106,000 in 2014, according to the city of Pearland Planning Department.

For years, Pearland has been home to many health care employees. More TMC employees reside in the 77584 ZIP code than in any other ZIP code in the Houston area, according to data provided by the Pearland Economic Development Corporation.

With the growth of the health care industry locally and expanded educational opportunities in the field through the University of Houston–Clear Lake and other higher education institutions, many health care professionals may now find jobs closer to home.

"These new medical facilities and the ancillary businesses that follow are a great source of jobs," Pearland EDC President Matt Buchanan said. "These companies are making significant investments in our community."

Buchanan also cited the quality of life improvement for residents provided by first-rate medical systems, such as Hospital

Corporation of America, Memorial Hermann and Kelsey-Seybold Clinic.

Pearland Mayor Tom Reid said he moved to the city in 1965 when it had two doctors for a population of about 4,000. Reid said the exponential growth he has seen in the health care industry in the city has helped improve the quality of life for Pearland's rising population.

"When medical facilities are available and easy to get to, the health of your community improves significantly," Reid said. "I don't know of many people that have let a bad cold or something like that [become] more serious illnesses because [medical care] is available right down the street."

Medical expansion

Pearland Medical Center, an HCA hospital, will open as the city's first hospital—a 30-bed facility—in January at Hwy. 288 and Shadow Creek Parkway. The hospital will join Pearland Medical Plaza, which already houses an emergency facility, imaging center and three-story medical office building.

"HCA has other hospitals in the area, and some have been serving Pearland residents, but with the growth it just made sense to build a hospital here so residents won't have to drive," Pearland Medical Center CEO Matt Dixon said. "All of our in-patient services will be new to the area. We are expanding our women's services so expectant mothers don't have to leave and can deliver their children right there in their hometown."

In February, Memorial Hermann opened an outpatient facility on a 40-acre site between Hwy. 288 and Business Center Drive. Construction is underway there on a 64-bed hospital scheduled to open in December 2015.

Erin Asprec, CEO of Memorial Hermann Southeast Hospital and Memorial Hermann Convenient Care Center Pearland, said Memorial Hermann Southeast in southeast Houston was already serving the Pearland area.

"We already had a relationship with the city," Asprec said. "Pearland is an up-and-coming city. The people are very warm and inviting, and it has a real hometown feel."

Kelsey-Seybold Clinic opened a new Pearland facility in October 2013 at 2515 Business Center Drive, off Hwy. 288, to replace the former Silverlake clinic, at 9430 W. Broadway St., and the current Shadow Creek Ranch clinic at 1097 Shadow Creek Parkway.

The company not only expanded the medical services it provides, but relocated its administrative offices to Pearland.

"Kelsey-Seybold was looking at Pearland as a home for its administrative offices as far back as 2008," said John Lyle, vice president of operations for Kelsey-Seybold. "But then the market cooled, so we had to wait a bit. Then, as the market started to pick back up, [we] began working with the Pearland EDC, who put together a proposal."

Economic effect

Along with quality-of-life improvements, Buchanan said the medical systems bring financial investment into the area.

Dixon said HCA invested more than $71 million to build Pearland Medical Center and, as a for-profit company, adds to the tax base.

"First, we are a for-profit hospital, so we pay taxes," Dixon said. "Then, the employees that we hire from Pearland or from elsewhere who move to Pearland will have an economic impact."

Asprec said Memorial Hermann's $80 million investment in Pearland could directly contribute to as many as 500 jobs, with room for additional growth.

"[The facility] has space available to expand in phases to 128 beds and ultimately as many as 254 beds," Asprec said. "Our plan is to grow with the community."

When Kelsey-Seybold invested $36 million to relocate its administrative offices to the city, Lyle said 850 jobs came with it, with some of those employees moving to Pearland.

"The people who work at these facilities also make pretty good salaries," Reid said. "It encourages other growth in the community—quality retail shopping [and] restaurants—because that's what these people want. I think it's a generator and [a distributor] of economic benefits that are derived from those type of facilities when they come in."