PEACHLAND VIEW
OCTOBER 14, 2016
13
OPINION
Construction on new $312M patient care tower at PRH now in full swing with arrival of massive industrial crane KEITH LACEY
ABERDEEN PUBLISHING editor@osoyoostimes.comt
Construction on the new $312-million patient care tower at Penticton Regional Hospital is now in full swing after a massive industrial crane was showcased during a media conference last Friday. The huge crane that rises high into the Penticton sky represents not only a figurative symbol, but is the piece of equipment that will literally do most of the heavy lifting as the new patient care towers gets built. Dignitaries from Interior Health, the City of Penticton and MLA Dan Ashton were joined by construction manager Ezio del Fatti to officially kick off the beginning of construction on the new patient care tower that will provide state-of-the-art health care services to Penticton residents – and those from Peachland and across the South Okanagan – for generations to come once it opens in the fall of 2019. Groundbreaking on the site took place in early July and preliminary construction work has been taking place since. The huge crane has been on site since early last week and full-scale construction on the actual tower will begin this week. Del Fatti is the heading up the project for EllisDon Infrastructure, which was awarded the contract to build the new patient care tower at PRH in early 2016. Preliminary construction on infrastructure and building the concrete pad to ensure the massive crane is securely in place has already taken place, said del Fatti. Maureen Thompson, Acute Health Services Manager with Interior Health, said this new hospital would ensure that residents from Penticton – and throughout the South Okanagan – would be able to access quality health care in a state-ofthe-art facility that will serve the needs of patients for generations to come. “We’ve been planning for this new patient care tower for a very, very long time,” said Thompson. Discussion about the need for a new regional hospital to replace PRH dates back many years, said Thompson. “This is making a statement telling everyone in the entire South Okanagan Valley that our new tower is getting built,” she said. Del Fatti said the construction crane that will be used to haul concrete and other building materials over the next several months rises 55 metres high and has a hoist ratio of 70 metres. The concrete base built to support the massive crane is 30 feet by 30 feet in diameter and runs four feet deep into the ground. Penticton is known to be a place where the wind howls on a regular basis, especially during the winter months, but crews will be able to continue to work safely under most weather conditions as long as winds don’t exceed 70 km/h and the temperature doesn’t dip below minus 20 degrees Celcius, he said. The crane is capable of lifting construction materials that weigh up to 2,400 kilograms using the boom and up to 10,000 kilograms once materials are suspended using the mast of the crane,
GROUND WAS BROKEN on
CRAIG GILBERT
the site in July and work is well underway on the new
Patient Care Tower at Penticton Regional Hospital. The Patient Care Tower and parkade will open in 2019. On hand last Friday were (left to right) Deb Runge, Acute Care Health Services Director; Lori Motluk, Executive Director, South Okanagan & North Okanagan Hospitals & Community Integrated Services; Carey Bornn, SOS Foundation Director; Dan Ashton, Penticton MLA; Ezio del Fatti, EllisDon Construction Manager; Andrew Jakubeit, Penticton Mayor; Ken Burrows, IH Board Member; Brent Kruschel, Chief Project Officer; Maureen Thomson, Acute Health Services Director; Walter Despot, Regional Hospital District Chair and Board Chair, SOS Foundation
nical issues to deal with during the next three years of construction, del Fatti said he will have access to a mechanical engineer and electrical engineer every single day on the job site. Noise and vibration can cause problems for patients trying to recover, so every precaution will be taken to limit the amount of noise and vibration during the construction of the tower and parkade during the next 12 months, he said. During the second week in July, British Columbia’s Premier Christy Clark was joined by numerous dignitaries for the official groundbreaking ceremony. Clark said the hospital expansion project would result in improved health care for residents of Penticton and the entire South Okanagan region for generations to come. Clark thanked all those who have worked hard to make it a reality. “We all know someone who has needed hospital care and when that happens they deserve the best possible care, close to home in the South Okanagan and Similkameen,” she said. This is the value of a strong, growing economy, it gives us the ability to make investments in the services we all depend on.” The hospital opened its doors in the early 1950s and it has been 25 years since the last major renovation. The 281,700-square-foot patient care tower will bring together outpatient care services into one building, provide five modern operating rooms, expand the medical device processing/sterilization unit to nearly triple its current size and provide three floors of single-occupancy inpatient rooms with private washrooms. Also included in the new tower is expanded space for the UBC Faculty of Medicine program. There will also be 84 in-patient beds in single patient rooms. The regional hospital district is providing $117-million, the South Okanagan Similkameen Medical Foundation is contributing $20-million, Interior Health is providing $14.4-million and the provincial portion is $161.1-million.
trical rooms will have to be demolished, he said. The height of the crane is 12 feet high- he said. Because there will be so many techer than the highest point once the tower is built, which will be used as a landing pad for a medical helicopter, he said. A crew of about 200 construction workers will be on site to build the frame of the patient care tower over the next 12 months, he said. The plan is to begin conSt. Margaret’s struction on the tower for Anglican Church several months before construction on a six-storey parkade begins next spring east of the tower, he said. While the new facility is being built, the existing hospital will continue to Sunday Worship operate, which will provide 1162 Hudson Road 10 a.m. the biggest challenge for Don McMillan West Kelowna, B.C. Tuesday Morning 250-769-5685 work crews, he said. 9:30 a.m. Study, Coffee Fruit of the Spirit Building the new tower Sunday Services & Conversation Love Part two and parkade “will be a bit Contemporary Worship like a chess game” over the Office Hours Service 9 a.m. For more information call 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. next 12 months, he said. Traditional Worship Don McMillan 250-300-1642 Monday to Friday Del Fatti, who has helped Service 10:30 a.m. John 250-767-2221 build three other large hosRev. Robin Graves Sunday School pitals during his career, said 10:30 a.m. the almost all of the existing 4th Street & Brandon Ave Ages 3 thru to Grade 6 4464 4th Street hospital will remain intact www.gracelutherankelowna.com (St. Margaret’s Anglican during the entire construcWe are wheelchair accessible Church building) www.stmargaretspeachland.org tion phase. A couple of smaller elec-
Peachland
Places of Faith
Grace Lutheran Church
Peachland United Church 4421 4th Street
250-767-2206 “Let Us Worship Together”
Affiliated with The Pentecostal Church of Canada
250-767-3131
Hall rental contact Doreen 250-767-2132 Sunday Morning Service 10 a.m. Sermon topic “Psalm 137 Two Views” Minister: Ian McLean all are welcome