Medical Centre expansion
The Creemore Medical Centre is about to embark on a $796,000 expansion, the result of five years of planning in which the Board exceeded its one-year fundraising goal of $350,000 by $150,000.
“People were very interested in this project,” said Bill Mann, Chairman of the Creemore Medical Centre Service Board, which administers the Centre on the Township’s behalf. “We received corporate and personal donations.”
Construction will start before the end of the month, said Mann. He expects ground will be broken within the next week.
The expansion will occur in three phases: first, the addition will be built, then the wall will be broken and finally, the internal renovations will be completed.
To accommodate the renovation schedule, the Medical Centre will close for two to three weeks in late winter or early spring. The entire construction is expected to take six to seven months, Mann said.
The renovated Medical Centre will provide space for two new physicians (one in summer 2014 and one in 2015), nurse practitioners and new services such as a laboratory, as well as a room where local residents can meet with visiting specialists instead of having to travel to another town or city.
The Centre will also have better access for seniors and people with physical disabilities, a new reception and office area, a physiotherapy space and a community health centre. The interiors will be modernized to meet building code requirements.
Mann called the Board’s plan, which includes operating and construction budgets, and financing, “self-sufficient.”
“This project is entirely self-funding – we are not asking for taxpayers’ money,” said Mann.
The rent revenue will cover all costs, including repaying a $300,000 bank loan over the next 30 years.
Rent will be $15 per square foot, lower than the $18 to $20 charged by similar facilities in Collingwood. “We will stay profitable and keep rents attractive,” Mann said.
The Board’s financial plan includes compensation for the approximately half a month’s revenue the current tenants will lose during construction.
