Downtown Phoenix residents and employees have a new — and central — place to go for their healthcare needs.
Under a new partnership with the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury, IASIS Healthcare has converted the historic Sun Mercantile Building into a state-of-the-art clinic serving both players and the general public.
The three-floor facility is the first of its kind in Downtown Phoenix and a one-stop shop for nearly all health services — including cardiology, chiropractic, dermatology, primary care, dentistry, optometry, orthopedics, podiatry, physical therapy, rheumatology, sports medicine and sports behavioral health.
“When we first entered the partnership with the Suns, they really wanted to have a healthcare partner that could help them realize a longstanding dream of theirs,” said Joanie Brady, vice president of marketing for IASIS, “to take their space and turn it into a healthcare facility for their players and the Phoenix community.”
According to Brady, no other NBA team offers the public access to its physicians, but the Suns recognized a need for more healthcare services in Downtown Phoenix.
“It’s a unique partnership but it’s one that potential patients can be excited about it,” she said. “They’re going to have access to the same services that the players have access to.”
The 28,000-square-foot clinic is also offering diagnostic services and testing like CT, general x-ray, laboratory and MRI, which features rare multi-sensory technology like lighting, projection and sound to help calm patients during the procedure.

Walking through the clinic, there are vestiges of the building’s past: exposed wooden trusses, redbrick walls, and concrete floors and columns — all of which Jamie Randall, senior marketing director for IASIS, said were thoughtfully preserved.
“We really wanted to make sure we kept the authenticity of the building throughout the whole construction phase,” she said. “We worked very closely with the City of Phoenix and historical groups in Phoenix to make sure it was really staying true.”
Originally the warehouse for the Sun Mercantile Company — once the largest wholesale grocery house in Phoenix — the building has since undergone quite the transformation.
Prior to the clinic, the building housed the Phoenix Suns Athletic Club. Then in 2005, there was a proposal to build a hotel on the site, but the project never materialized.
A decade later, the building is beginning its next chapter, but not without acknowledging its past.
The building is the only remnant of what was once downtown’s thriving Chinatown, built and owned by prominent Chinese-born businessman Shing Tang.
To pay homage to its history, IASIS has been working with the Chinese American community and has allocated a place inside the clinic to commemorate the building’s significance in Chinese American heritage and culture in Phoenix.
“I’m thrilled that we’ve been able to align with them and pay tribute to them,” Brady said. “We’re really glad that they’re as supportive as they are.”
Construction is expected to finish up in April or May, but the clinic is now open and accepting patients. In the future, IASIS plans to offer community education opportunities, seminars, and health screening events to the public and employer groups.
“The layout, the space, how we were able to use the space — it’s amazing,” Brady said. “A nearly 100-year-old building wasn’t built to house healthcare offices.”
(Photo courtesy IASIS Healthcare)