The Ottawa Hospital Board of Governors has added its voice to the growing chorus of opposition to the idea of building the new Civic Campus at Tunney’s Pasture.
Last week The National Capital Commission Board selected Tunney’s Pasture over eleven other potential sites as the one it will recommend to Heritage Minister Melanie Joly, who oversees the NCC.
Just days later, the Ottawa Hospital Board soundly rejected the Tunney’s Pasture proposal.
In a statement, the Hospital Board said “After hearing from the patients and citizens of the National Capital Region and eastern Ontario, and after completing our own analysis of the NCC report, we cannot in good faith support Tunney’s Pasture as the future location for the Civic Campus. As a result, last night at a meeting of the Board, the Governors unanimously passed a motion to not support the NCC Board recommendation.”
The Hospital Board’s concerns include reduced access, increased costs, and a longer timeline.
"This is a 10 year project, and we're very concerned about the delays that this would cause in our community. We're standing in a building right now that is a hundred years old. We can't fix it anymore. We need a new hospital for the citizens of Ottawa now," says Ottawa Hospital Board Chair, James McCracken.
The Hospital Board has the final decision on where to build, but it is restricted by what land can be made available. It's previous choice was at the Central Experimental Farm, just across the road from the existing Civic Campus.
The NCC’s proposal to offer Tunney's Pasture instead has been met with growing criticism.
After the Hospital Board announced its position, five area Members of Provincial Parliament echoed the same concerns. In a joint statement, Bob Chiarelli, Yasir Naqvi, John Fraser, Marie-France Lalonde, and Nathalie Des Rosiers said “Our concerns are in line with what has been previously expressed by various community leaders surrounding access, cost to public purse and risk of a lengthy delay. This is a significant investment in our healthcare system and the quality of life for all Ottawa residents. It is extremely important that we get it right to avoid lengthy delays to the rollout of this project, and we believe that this recommendation needs to be reconsidered.”
In a statement of its own, the NCC says it “conducted an open and transparent review to determine the best federal site for the new Civic Campus of The Ottawa Hospital.”
It goes on to say “The NCC had invited The Ottawa Hospital to discuss their concerns and we remain open to meeting with the hospital at its convenience.”
