Oshawa, Pickering and Whitby compete for new hospital as Lakeridge Health calls for final proposals
Published September 22, 2021 at 3:02 pm
The next round in the fight for Durham Regions new hospital began Tuesday when Lakeridge Health announced the call for formal site proposals.
The three municipalities vying to host the new hospital – Oshawa, Whitby and Pickering – have until October 8 to prove they meet the first stage of the proposal requirements.
Lakeridge will shortlist applications by October 15. Applicants will then have a month to prove they meet a second list of criteria, which focuses on infrastructure and transit issues, such as access to the site.
Each contender has a spot picked out in the northern reaches of their jurisdictions. New locations have to be at least 10 kilometres from the existing hospitals that dot Durham’s southern half.
Durham Region is set to grow to 1.2 million people in the next twenty years, nearly doubling its population. According to Whitby Mayor Dan Mitchell, his town will grow by 40 per cent in eleven years. alone All three candidates cite this population boom as the major drive for the new location.
Whitby is the only municipality without an acute care hospital. Oshawa already has a centrally located hospital while Pickering shares a hospital with Ajax.
Videos
Pickering Mayor said the decision will be very important for Durham’s future. “Before us is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to bring a world-class hospital to Durham Region, at a time when investment has never been more important.”
The winner will be recommended to the Lakeridge board in December.
insauga's Editorial Standards and Policies advertising