06-26-2023, 09:48 AM
(This post was last modified: 06-26-2023, 09:50 AM by danbrotherston.)
(06-26-2023, 09:35 AM)SF22 Wrote: There's no way this land parcel is as big as they are asking for, but I think the empty area around Hagey Blvd next to the R&T ION stop is worth looking into. It's on the Laurel Trail, there are a few bus lines close by that could easily be rerouted to provide even more direct service, and most of its neighbours are businesses in the technology park (less disruption to residences, although the folks on Corrie Cres might not be super pleased). It's not right on the highway, but neither is GRH or St Marys. Definitely a weirdly-shaped plot of land, but a hospital campus is likely to have a number of buildings that could be arranged to make the most of it. Plus, there is some greenspace surrounding it, and there are studies showing that patients recover faster when they are able to look out over nature from their rooms. If you want to keep traffic off of Bearinger, you could cut through an entrance to Westmount.
I mean, the R&T park is already a joke of a suburban office strip...so why not put a suburban hospital there.
I do think you would have difficulty connecting to Westmount, as that is an environmentally sensitive area, but there is no reason the access can't be off Bearinger. It has direct access to Westmount, and more, they are insisting on widening Bearinger because our regional staff are incompetent at transportation planning, so if they wanted less traffic that ship has already sailed.
That being said, to ijmorlan's comment, there is actually a huge benefit to having facilities co-located in a hospital, the point is to share common facilities, like labs, imaging, and other services. While it's easy for staff to move between facilities, it's very hard for patients to move between facilities. I can see the value in co-locating the facilities, but it doesn't change that the land requirement is totally absurd. The land requirement is driven by parking and nothing else.
FWIW: Amersfoort has a brand new large hospital built here, it is the only one in town (they demolished the old one). It is at the edge of the city, accessible by bike and bus, but still very remote and far, most people arrive by car. It has a ton of parking including multiple parking structures. Even including all the surface parking, accessory buildings and gardens (yes, it includes gardens), the site only takes up 24 acres.