A blood plasma collection facility is going into the former Dick’s Sporting Goods store at 5250 Elmore Ave., Davenport.
BioLife Plasma Services has announced plans to open in the vacant sporting goods store in the coming weeks, according to the company’s website at biolifeplasma.com.
The collection facility is scheduled to open in the late spring or early summer of 2023, Ashley Cohen, a spokeswoman with BioLife, told the QCBJ on Wednesday, Sept. 28. Company officials did not comment on how many people will be employed at the new location.
But it appears BioLife will use only a portion of the former big box store. The plasma facility will occupy about 1,500 square feet of the building, according to City of Davenport officials. The building has 36,866 square feet of “open space,” according to a NAI Ruhl & Ruhl Commercial property listing.
Remodeling work has been in progress for at least a couple of weeks. On Tuesday, Sept. 27, work crews were busy on various exterior and interior projects on the building.
The site is located in a shopping center, between the David’s Bridal and temporary Spirit Halloween stores.
Outside the building, signs announce the “Future home of BioLIfe” and promote “Now hiring” the blood plasma company.
BioLIfe is an “industry leader in the collection of high-quality plasma that is processed into life-saving plasma-based therapies. We operate numerous state-of-the-art plasma collection facilities throughout the United States and Europe,” according to the company website.
BioLife, which has its headquarters in Layton, Utah, has more than 170 plasma centers in 35 states across the country. It has 8,000 employees and two dedicated screening labs, the website said.
The company said that some amenities at many of its sites across the country include: clean and professional health care setting, spacious facility, clear compensation program, and a supervised children’s playroom.
Dick’s Sporting Goods officials in 2016 announced plans to move the business north from 5250 Elmore Ave. to its current home at 5511 Elmore Ave.
The old Dick’s store has been empty for most of the time since the move. However, the Halloween costume and decoration business, Spirit Halloween, has used a portion of the business building for several years during September and October. In addition, it was used as a COVID-19 mass vaccination site last year.
