The University at Buffalos new medical school will be the size of three Walmart supercenters when it opens on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus in 2016.

But the projects designers aim to do more than provide ample space, with a glass atrium and terra cotta facade to reflect the citys classic architecture.

The construction work following todays groundbreaking ceremony also starts a culture change.

The big picture is that it lets us start to transform a medical culture into one that achieves excellence from internal collaboration instead of from competition, said Dr. Michael E. Cain, the dean of the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and UBs vice president of health sciences.

When finished, the $375 million, eight-story medical school will be a key component of a long-sought vision to bring hospitals, research and doctor-training facilities to one downtown location.

The two L-shaped buildings connected by a glass atrium at Main and High streets give the medical community a chance to better align and improve scientific research, medical education and patient care among the different institutions and health-related professions.

Its a seminal event for us," said William Joyce, chairman of the Medical Campus board of directors. If you are an aspirant to be an academic health center of national significance, and we are, you need to integrate research, education and clinical care.

The medical school will return close to where it started in 1846 next to Buffalo General Medical Center.

Officials say the new school will serve as the entrance and connecting hub to the rest of the Medical Campus.

The project coincides with other developments in the Medical Campus five-block area, including Kaleida Healths Gates Vascular Institute and UBs Clinical and Translational Research Center.

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Building begins for a new UB medical school and culture