Groundbreaking Signals Construction Start
- May 2009
- Français
Community and hospital leaders joined forces Apr. 28 at the official groundbreaking ceremony for the new 970,000 sq. ft. health-care complex which includes the Walker Family Cancer Centre. Site preparation will begin immediately and construction will take more than three years. Substantial completion will be in late 2012 with the doors of the state-of-the-art facility expected to open to patients in 2013.
Thank you Niagara!
Groundbreaking for the Niagara Health System's new health-care complex and Walker Family Cancer Centre took place Apr. 28 when Minister of Transportation and MPP for St. Catharines Jim Bradley joined hospital officials, community members, fundraising volunteers and health-care partners at the site for the official ceremony.
The ground was officially broken by It's Our Time fundraising campaign patient heroes on four excavators driven by operators from Walker Industries, Matt's Excavating, Rankin Construction and PCL Constructors.
The groundbreaking event was an opportune time for the NHS to introduce it’s new partner and event sponsor Plenary Health Niagara as a corporate citizen in Niagara for at least the next three decades.
Plenary Health Niagara is a partnership between Plenary Group and Borealis Infrastructure. The partnership features specialist health-care, construction, and finance personnel and has as its sole focus the delivery of the project on time and on budget and its successful physical operations over the next 34 years.
In addition to Plenary’s sponsorship of the groundbreaking event, sincere thanks and appreciation is extended to the following suppliers and partners who provided the NHS with in-kind donations, preferential pricing and a collaborative sprit to help make this celebratory event a reality:
- Niagara Tents and Events (venue)
- The Green House (floral design)
- Pick Ontario, Van Geest Bros. Limited, Meyers Flowers, Prins Grow Inc., Northend Gardens, Willy’s Greenhouses, Northend Floral Inc., Pioneer Flower Farms and My Bouquet (flowers)
- Design Electronics (audiovisual services)
- Omni Media (professional editing and camera services)
- ADF Group (graphic design)
- Speedpro Imaging (printing)
- An Affair to Remember (food and beverage)
- Orchestrations (event coordination)
- St. Catharines Transit (shuttle transportation)
- City of St. Catharines (parking logistics)
- Niagara Regional Police Service
- Walker Industries, Rankin Construction Inc., Matt’s Excavating and PCL (excavators and operators)
- PCL (site grading and logistics)
The constructor for the project, PCL, intends to use local sub-trades extensively, with the majority of on-site labour going to tradespersons in the Golden Horseshoe area. PCL will be calling for tenders from pre-qualified sub contractors for the project. Firm commitments for portions of the work have already been made during the proposal stage of the project; the remainder of tendering activity will take place in early 2010.
Construction of the new facility will be completed by the end of 2012, which means the new health-care complex will open its doors to patients in 2013.
To be located at First Street and Fourth Avenue in St. Catharines, the new health-care complex project will provide a sizeable boost to the regional and Ontario economies during construction by directly and indirectly supporting and creating approximately 5,400 jobs, many of which will be in the Niagara region. At the peak of construction activity, about 1,000 workers are expected on the site daily. Approximately 200 new health-care jobs will be created once the facility opens to support the new regional services in cancer, cardiac and mental health disease.
The new health-care complex will be approximately 970,000 square feet and will be built on a 32-acre section of the 40-acre site in St. Catharines. It will be environmentally friendly and has been designed to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. Environmental features include energy efficient lighting, cooling and heating, which will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The 375-bed replacement facility for the aging St. Catharines General and Ontario Street sites of the NHS will offer acute and critical inpatient services, surgical, emergency and ambulatory services available under one roof for the residents of St. Catharines, Thorold, Niagara-on-the Lake and the area. The facility will feature 80 per cent single patient rooms, the most available in a community hospital in Ontario.
For more information, click here or contact:
Liisa Morley
Coordinator, Project Communications
lmorley@niagarahealth.on.ca
905-378-4647 ext. 46542