I think it is an excellent location of a new hospital in Corner Brook!
http://thewesternstar.com/index.cfm?sid=290164&sc=23
New hospital site chosen: Wheeler's Road and Lewin Parkway is Western Health's new address
CORNER BROOK
CLIFF WELLS
The Western Star
Premier Danny Williams, left, and Minister of Health and Community Services Paul Oram, unveil where the site of the new Western Memorial Regional Hospital will be built Monday. — Star photo by Geraldine Brophy
The announcement of a new Western Memorial Regional Hospital is the about the biggest news Tony Genge has ever heard.
The chair of Western Health’s board of directors told The Western Star the new facility, which will be east of Wheeler’s Road and north the Lewin Parkway near the intersection of both roads, augurs well for the region as a whole. He believes it addresses a real need in health care, and he’s happy government has stepped up.
“This is by far the biggest announcement I’ve heard, if not (just) in the western region, then in the province since we’ve restructured,” Genge said. “It has huge potential for the improvement of health-care services for our whole region from the Port aux Basques area and the south coast right up the Northern Peninsula.
“It’s the biggest announcement since I came here in 1995 by far. There’s nothing close to it, really.
Israel Hann, a seniors activist and long-term care advocate, said the announcement of Corner Brook’s new hospital is music to his ears, but he’s hoping the tune won’t last as long as it did with the long-term care centre he pushed 12 years for.
“It took 10 years to complete it from the time they announced they we’re going to do it ... from the planning stages it took 10 years,” Hann said. “I’m hoping within eight to 10 years the hospital is going to be completed and open for business.
“With the architectural work and the groundwork that has to be done, I think it’s going to take that long.”
In announcing the hospital Premier Danny Williams said the new facility will cost “multi-hundreds of millions” of dollars.
He said 15 sites were examined in the search for the new hospital site with criteria such as soil-type and room for expansion.
“The new Western Memorial Regional Hospital will undoubtedly be one of the single largest infrastructure projects this province has seen in recent memory,” Williams said. “I mean it. This is a big deal, folks.
“You don’t put hundreds of millions of dollars into a new state-of-the-art facility that’s going to be the best in the province without believing there is a really solid future for the people of the region.”
He said a new 1.6 kilometre road from the top of Wheeler’s Road to the Sir Wilfred Grenfell College area will help connect the long-term care centre, dementia units and new hospital.
Now that the site has been selected, the next step is to develop a program for the building, and then start the groundwork.
The cash for site selection and programming for the new hospital is just part of the $76 million to be spent this year on health-care infrastructure.
The premier said there’s only so much money to go around and he wants to make sure it’s spent wisely.
“I reach out to the people of Lewisporte and Flower’s Cove. This government is not trying to punish anybody,” he said. “We’re not trying to make victims of anybody. We’re not trying to say we’re going to take away your X-ray service and let somebody else keep it. That’s not what this is about. We’re trying to say to these communities, Lewisporte for example, we’re putting in a $34 million facility. We’ve spent millions on roads. We need you to help us. We need to help us find some savings and where you can, let’s do it, let’s become more efficient.”
Paul Oram, Health and Community Services minister, said the new facility is delivering health care to the people of the province in the best possible way.
He said the announcement is a big step forward in health care for the province.
“Work on the new facility is ongoing and right now the programming, the determination for the new facility, is well underway,” Oram said. “When this process is complete, the planning for site preparation work can then begin.”