History

Columbia Park Medical Group began in 1956 as a two-physician family practice group and was incorporated in 1960. Today, we have evolved into a group of multispecialty clinics dedicated to serving the communities in the northern Minneapolis/St. Paul suburbs, with clinics in Andover, Blaine, Brooklyn Park, Columbia Heights and Fridley. Our hospital practice is concentrated at Unity Hospital, located in Fridley and within 15 minutes of all clinic sites.

Our medical group practice has a strong base of primary care physicians including Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Internal Medicine/Pediatrics, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology. To provide our patients with a wide range of medical services, we have specialists in the areas of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Dermatology, Endocrinology, General Surgery, Geriatrics, Infectious Diseases, Occupational Medicine, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Otolaryngology (ears, nose and throat), Podiatry, Sports Medicine, After Hours Clinic, Acute Care, and Urology. We also provide our patients with Certified lab and x-ray services, audiology and hearing aid dispensary, bone densitometry, echocardiography, mammography, physical therapy, massage therapy, optometry and eyewear shops, pharmacies, diagnostic ultrasound, massage therapy, on-site cardiology consultations, and a complete Imaging Center with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and computerized tomography (CT).

DEPRESSION'S END STIMULATES BUSINESS

Co-Founder - Dr. Lewis J. Roberts

It was 1938. The Depression was ending, prohibition had been lifted and the Works Progress Administration was helping cities and towns get back on their feet. Industry was springing up across Minnesota; professionals were establishing the roots of the area's most prominent businesses. In a former one-car garage on 38th and Central avenues in Columbia Heights, Dr. Hoff D. Good had established his office in the early 1930s. On July 5, 1938, he was joined by Dr. Lewis J. Roberts, who would become one of the driving forces behind Columbia Park Medical Group for more than 25 years.

Dr. Roberts reflected on his early days as a physician in wintry Minnesota. "There were no hospital emergency rooms for off-hours care, and house calls numbered four or five a day. One snowy day I remember making three calls at three dollars each, and being pulled out of snowbanks three times at five dollars each." The last time his snow packed car was towed into a garage, he resolved to stay home. However, two hours later, Dr. Roberts was picked up by a tractor/trailer and was driven across plowed fields, because the highways were blocked, to a farm for another house call. It wasn't until 1952 that Dr. Roberts set up his own practice after four years in the Navy. In 1956 he was joined by Dr. Earl Eli. One year later, at the American Academy of Family Practice convention in Chicago, Dr. Roberts looked into a medical office building plan developed by Sears Roebuck Foundation, which was assisting small communities with attracting physicians. Although the Foundation denied Dr. Roberts' request for assistance, in 1959, its decision was reversed and the Foundation furnished the plans, specifications, supervision and hiring of a contractor to build Dr. Roberts a clinic. When the clinic was nearly finished, Dr. Roberts contacted Dr. Wyllis Larson, who was opening a new office in a northern Minneapolis suburb. Dr. Larson and Dr. Roberts merged their practices, and on February 1, 1960, opened a clinic at 3620 Central Avenue NE in Columbia Heights.

During the next five years, the clinic would grow to six physicians. Dr. Donald Wright joined the group in 1962. Dr. Edson Fuglestad joined in August 1964 and in October 1965, Dr. Myles Efteland came on board. All six had completed their internships at Miller Hospital in St. Paul.

In 1966, Dr. Eli left the clinic for a residency in anesthesiology at the University of Minnesota. Shortly after, Dr. Allen Delzell joined the group, so there were again six physicians at the clinic.

CLINIC GETS FORMAL NAME

Columbia Park Clinic West

Also, in 1966 just before Dr. Roberts was leaving for a two week vacation, the groups administrative assistant stated that it was becoming too difficult to answer the phone with "Drs. Roberts, Larson, Wright, Fuglestad, Efteland and Delzell". Dr. Robert's reply was "Well, we are just across the road from Columbia Park". When he returned from his vacation he was surprised to see that the name "Columbia Park Clinic" was firmly established from signage to stationery.

Later that year Columbia Park Clinic purchased another lot, then drew up the plans for an addition. The addition, completed in 1968, more than doubled the clinic space and included new offices plus much-needed filing room in the basement.

The group also purchased a house on the north side of the office, which was demolished to establish a parking lot. The clinic's patient volume was now so large that a full-time manager was hired. In addition to family practice physicians, the clinic now had surgeons, internal medicine physicians and an obstetrician.

Columbia Park Clinic West

Dr. Donald Wright recalls the hectic days of the group, especially since there was no hospital in the northern suburbs of Minneapolis. "At the time that I joined the clinic, there was no hospital in the area. Emergency calls and weekend calls were all seen at the clinic. We were open on Saturday mornings. We arranged to have patients come to the clinic at fifteen-minute intervals and we would see them on Sundays. We had no assistants at that time; the physicians took all the X-rays. We did all our own lab work, hemoglobin's, white counts and UA's. It was a very interesting life." "We were very happy when Unity Hospital was built, which was only three to four miles from our clinic," he continued.

Columbia Park Clinic East

Located in Fridley, Unity was to become the group's primary hospital, and it remains that today.

Columbia Park Clinic continued to grow, and in 1972 purchased the building across the street which had been a pediatrics clinic. This site became Columbia Park East and provided the expansion needed to provide the quality of service needed by our patients.

QUALITY CARE IS FOCUS

By 1976, Columbia Park Clinic had 17 physicians. The group's desire was to continue growing, and at a planning meeting a few years later the group focused on becoming a large, multispecialty group that would continue to excel in quality of care.

Old Brooklyn Park Clinic

In the meantime, the group initiated plans for expansion and looked at the suburb of Brooklyn Park as a location. In January 1976, Brooklyn Park Medical Center opened with nine physicians staffing the site. At the same time, the group expressed interest in joining a Health Maintenance Organization, but was unsure of the HMO's future.

After many discussions with Share, a Minneapolis-based HMO, the group joined and began its long association with the HMO. Today the group accepts a variety of health insurance plans, including HMOs, PPOs and private insurance.

In 1982, an addition was built onto Brooklyn Park Medical Center which provided more office and record space plus housed a pharmacy. Expansion was again on the minds of the Columbia Park physicians. With approximately 30 physicians working two clinics, plans were initiated for another site. With the help of a California developer, a new clinic was designed; then came the task of obtaining land for it. The city of Fridley was receptive to the idea of a new clinic in town, and the land where Fridley Plaza Clinic now sits was purchased from the city. The 32,000-square-foot clinic opened in July 1983.

Columbia Park Clinic

In December 1986, a new structure was built on 40th and Central in Columbia Heights to replace the older clinic buildings which were too small for the group. This new structure is the present Columbia Park Clinic.

CPMG's growth did not stop with the building of Columbia Park Clinic in 1986. In 1991, the Fridley Plaza Office Building, located next to Fridley Plaza Clinic, was purchased by Columbia Park Properties, and houses CPMG's administrative offices while providing space for future expansion of Columbia Park Medical Group.

Fridley Plaza Clinic

In 1998 the Andover Park Clinic opened in Andover, MN ; located just north of Bunker Lake Boulevard on Hanson Boulevard. On opening day, the newest facility was 20,000 square feet and had 26 exam rooms, 3 special procedure rooms and a patient education room.

EXPANSION CONTINUES IN THE NEW MILLENIUM

In 2002 Columbia Park Medical Group expanded their Andover Park Clinic providing additional exam rooms to enhance service to our patients. The Andover facility is now 30,000 square feet, with 67 exam rooms and 4 procedure rooms.

In October of 2003, the organization decided to re-build and expand their Brooklyn Park Clinic. Now located at 10,000 Zane Avenue North in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, the two-story, 46,000 square foot clinic houses 65 exam rooms, plus dedicated special procedure rooms. In addition to providing primary specialties, the Brooklyn Park Clinic also offers other services such as Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Certified Lab and X-ray services, Ultrasound and Massage Therapy.

In February 2006 Columbia Park Medical Group opened a new clinic in Blaine. The clinic, located in the Club West Commons at 109th and Club West Parkway, is just four blocks north of the National Sports Center. With 24,000 square feet of space and 30 exam rooms, the clinic houses an array of speciality and primary healthcare services.

Continuing with their expansion and their vision of responding to the unique health care needs of the community, Columbia Park Medical Group also opened an Imaging Center, located in the same building as the Blaine facility. The Imaging Center offers the most advanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), computerized tomography (CT), ultrasound and X-ray systems available.

Andover Park Clinic

CPMG CELEBRATES 50TH ANNIVERSARY

On October 14th, 2006, Columbia Park Medical Group celebrated 50 Years of Caring. To celebrate it's milestone, the cities of Andover, Blaine, Brooklyn Park, Columbia Heights and Fridley all officially proclaimed October 14th, 2006 Columbia Park Medical Group Day in each of their separate cities. In addition, CPMG celebrated with a large anniversary event designed to remember the company's past, and celebrate its future. CPMG has been fortunate to have a patient base that has allowed the group to provide health care in the north metro communities for over 50 years and it is looking forward to providing quality health care throughout the next 50 years and beyond.

As of September 2007, Columbia Park Medical Group has made the decision to merge with Fairview Health Services. We believe this merger extends our seamless network of multi-specialty and primary care, allowing us to meet the healthcare needs of the same communities we currently serve. More services and locations will be available for you to receive the exceptional care for which Columbia Park Medical Group and Fairview are known.

On January 1, 2008, Columbia Park Medical Group (CPMG) and Fairview Health Services merged to enhance health care in the northern suburbs of the Twin Cities. The six multi-specialty clinics operated by CPMG have become part of Fairview, an integrated health care network serving Minneapolis-St. Paul, as well as communities throughout greater Minnesota and the upper Midwest.  Click here to visit Fairview’s website.

As Columbia Park looks to the future we will continue the legacy of quality care for our patients. A legacy that has inspired our mission: "The mission of Columbia Park Medical Group is to provide excellent health care today and tomorrow. Our vision is to be a seamless network of multi-specialty care that responds to the unique health care needs of our communities".

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Memoirs of Dr. L.J. Roberts

Memoirs of Dr. D.L. Wright "Columbia Heights: Bootstrap Town" by Irene Parsons Columbia Heights Library Files, including Columbia Heights Record