Hospital district settles on new site
January 29, 2009
By Michael Rowe
If all goes according to plan, King County Hospital District No. 4 could break ground at a new site by October 2009.
The health district has a contract to purchase land on the west side of Snoqualmie Parkway north of Interstate 90, within the boundaries of Snoqualmie.
“The new hospital will have a better location. It will be more visible. People will see it and use it more,” said Rodger McCollum, CEO of Health District No. 4.
A rendering of what the new King County Hospital District No. 4 complex will look like
The site of the proposed hospital is across the parkway from property previously eyed by the health district for its new hospital building. Efforts to get the previous property fell through when the King County Council declined to extend Snoqualmie’s urban growth area to include the property. Since the new site is already within Snoqualmie’s urban growth area, the health district will not have to get approval for the site from the County Council.
Although residential building in the area is slowing due to poor economic conditions, the Snoqualmie and North Bend communities are still expected to grow. The need for a new hospital will only increase, as more residents move to the Valley.
“We feel that this project will take care of health care in our community for the next 10 to 20 years,” McCullom said.
According to McCollum, studies show that new critical access hospitals like the one planned by the health district typically increase their revenue 20-25 percent.
The location for the new hospital will likely also mean that more local residents will use the facility. McCullom expects Snoqualmie Ridge residents to take advantage of the close facility, once it is open.
McCollum said that the project is expected to go before the Snoqualmie City Council in February for zoning approval, which should be completed in March. The health district wants to close on the purchase of property for the hospital in June 2009 and to begin preparing the site for construction immediately after the purchase to take advantage of good weather. They hope to have the design phase completed and a building permit issued by the time the site is ready for an official groundbreaking.
After the groundbreaking, the project will take between 18-24 months to complete. The new hospital could be open as soon as late 2010 or early 2011.
The health district has an agreement with the Snoqualmie Tribe to purchase its existing hospital on Ethan Wade Way Southeast and the 50 acres it sits on, which are already adjacent to the Snoqualmie Casino. The sale of the hospital and its property could bring $30 million to the health district.
McCollum described two ways the district might fund the $50 million building project and land purchase. The health district may use the $30 million from the sale of its old building and approximately $20 million in bonds, or it could use the $30 million to pay off the district’s existing debts and issue new bonds for the hospital construction.
The district currently has $22 million in outstanding debt. State law allows the health district to issue approximately $55 million in bond obligations, without getting voter approval.
McCollum said that the health district commission would likely make a decision on how to fund the project by June or July. The district and its commissioners are waiting to see if the bond market is favorable for a bond issue in the summer.
The new hospital will increase the number of patient beds from 14 to 28. It would also double the health district’s hospital space. The existing hospital on Ethan Wade Way Southeast is a 25,000 square-foot facility. The new hospital will likely provide between 65,000 – 70,000 square feet of space.
McCullom said that the district would like to have 90,000 square feet, but could not fit the extra space into the budget. However, the new building will be designed to allow expansion in the future.
The Snoqualmie Tribe’s plans for the old hospital building are to convert it into a tribal health center.
Reach reporter Michael Bayless Rowe at mrowe@snovalleystar.com or 425-392-6434 Ext. 248.
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