Mega-hospital having trouble starting construction

By Vince Ferraro

The spokesperson for Windsor Regional Hospital says its employees want the mega-hospital to be built but there are delays.

“Those who work at the hospital wish it could be built today” said Steve Erwin, the manager of government and community relations for Windsor Regional Hospital, adding that a new up-to-date facility is something to look forward to.

While Erwin is unsure of when they will see the new hospital being built, he thinks the location on County Road 42 is a good choice.

“We had a multi-member site selection process and if you want to build a new hospital in Windsor you have to decide where you want to put it,” said Erwin. The hospital launched a committee who volunteered to go through offers and proposals for new locations. “A whole bunch of different property owners in Windsor and in the county submitted proposals, saying ‘I think my property would be a great place to build a new hospital’,” said Erwin. According to Erwin, many of the proposals that weren’t chosen were still outside the city’s core.

A potential roadblock to finalizing the hospital build is the Citizens for an Accountable Megahospital Planning Process. CAMPP is a group where people come together to voice their opinions on the new mega-hospital. CAMPP did not agree with the location that was picked but they liked the idea of the mega-hospital.

Melinda Munro is a member of CAMPP who has raised concerns surrounding the mega-hospital project. 

“I really want Windsor and Essex County to have the approved quality healthcare that we need,” said Munro. “I just think that we don’t need 1,000 acres of retail in order to have that.”

According to Erwin, the plan is to make either the Ouellette campus of the Windsor Regional Hospital or the old Grace Hospital site an urgent care centre. The Metropolitan campus of WRH will go to the city,  but there is no information on what might be done with it.