Kaiser Permanente has selected Pasadena as the home of its new medical school, the healthcare giant announced Thursday in a company statement.

Central Pasadena was chosen by Kaiser because of the site’s proximity to major freeways, public transportation options and affordable housing, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“Pasadena is a vibrant and diverse community,” Kaiser Chairman and Chief Executive Bernard Tyson said in the statement. “That diversity is essential to the model of medical education we want to establish as we prepare physicians for the practice of medicine in the 21st century.”

The Oakland HMO giant first announced plans in December to open a medical school, but had not yet selected a site.