Southlake Regional Health Centre is launching a site selection process, with the goal of finding a location for a new hospital by spring 2025.
The Newmarket hospital has been grappling with overcrowding for several years, with hospital president and chief executive officer Paul Woods saying patient numbers have doubled in the past two decades, "meaning a new patient arrives at the emergency department every four-and-a-half minutes."
“Relieving pressure at the Davis Drive site is critical, which is why we are initiating an open call to identify land to help transform Southlake into a multi-site health-care system," Woods said in a news release.
There are several mandatory criteria the proposed location must meet, including:
- A minimum of 40 acres of developable land;
- Documentation of land ownership;
- Confirmation from all owners to proceed with a land transaction to Southlake;
- Environmental reports showing there is no known soil or groundwater contamination;
- Land is not within key natural heritage features or in areas that would prevent the development of a hospital;
- Located outside the Greenbelt and Oak Ridges Moraine;
- Serviceable – with water, sewage, natural gas, electrical and communications infrastructure in the next five to seven years;
- Be within a 17-kilometre radius of Southlake’s Davis Drive site;
- Allow for the creation of a heliport;
- No known archaeological or other impediments to development.
The search radius extends 17-kilometres from the existing Davis Drive site as the crow flies, with the caveat that any proposed site cannot be within a 10-kilometre radius of another acute care hospital site, like Oak Valley Health’s Markham Stouffville site and Mackenzie Health’s Vaughan and Richmond Hill sites.
“Identifying the optimal site to meet the needs of our patients is a critical step to move forward in our redevelopment journey,” John Marshman, vice-president for capital, facilities and business development, said in a news release. “While it generally takes eight to 10 years to plan and build a new hospital in Ontario, our work to chart the next 100 years of care in our communities is well underway and we look forward to announcing a successful proponent in the spring.”
In recent months, Southlake has begun work on converting its ambulatory garage into an extension of its emergency room facility in a bid to address overcrowding.
Southlake had been considering a proposal from King Township and a developer to build a hospital on Greenbelt land on the border of Newmarket, but that plan fell through when the province pulled back on development on the protected lands.
Applicants have several deadlines to meet over the coming months, with the submission deadline for stage one set at Jan. 15.
From there, shortlisted submissions will have until March 14 to submit a final proposal.
More information about the process can be found online.
