On Tuesday afternoon, the province announced $15M toward a redevelopment plan for Collingwood General and Marine Hospital (CGMH).
Deputy Premier Christine Elliott announced the funding will be applied to the modernization and expansion of the current hospital on site.
The money is meant to support planning and design of a redeveloped Collingwood General and Marine Hospital.
"Over the course of the project, the current hospital will be expanded and upgraded with modern facilities to replace existing, aged infrastructure," said Elliott. "By expanding the current site, we will be able to maximize existing infrastructure during the initial development and prioritize departments that require immediate upgrades through new construction."
Elliott made the announcement from the parking lot at the CGMH this afternoon after touring the hospital.
CGMH CEO Norah Holder confirmed the hospital has now moved into the second phase of the redevelopment process mandated by the province and the money announced today will help the hospital along the planning process, with more expected when the work is underway.
Though Elliott referred to an expanded hospital on the existing site, she left the question of a new build open.
"There's been a big demand for funds for health care dealing with COVID and there is only so much money that can be put into capital redevelopment, but this is a really important project, and that's why we're moving forward with the second phase," said Elliott. "That's why the $15 million is going into redevelopment and planning."
The local hospital submitted its first plan to the province in 2016, and has been working with the Ministry of Health's capital branch through the first phase since then, which consisted of a master plan and program to outline future programs and services for a new or expanded hospital for the region.
In the second step, the hospital will have to submit a functional program proposal to further identify the various functions of the new hospital. Holder said the second phase will take between 12 to 18 months, and neither Holder, nor Elliott could give an estimate on how long it would take for building to start.
The third phase is preliminary designs, and the fourth is working drawings. The fifth and final phase is construction.
