Walsh Canada has announced the commercial and financial close on the Etobicoke General Hospital Phase 1 Patient Tower expansion, a plan that has been in the works for several years. As part of a project agreement with William Osler Health Systems and Infrastructure Ontario, the construction of Phase 1 of the hospital's redevelopment is valued at $170 million.

Etobicoke General Hospital South East aerial view image courtesy of Walsh Construction

The commercial and financial close on the hospital's redevelopment plan indicates that the contractual requirements have been fulfilled, giving way for construction to begin in June of 2016. Walsh Canada, as the builder for the project, will be working with HDR Architecture Associates Inc. as the design leads, Brookfield Financial as the financial advisors, and ENGIE Services as the maintenance group for the facility.

There are two portions of development that are underway, the first one being a 17,000 sq ft. renovation to the existing building, which will have several connections to the new expansion of the building. The hospital expansion plan boasts a substantial 250,000 sq ft. of space, laid out over four storeys.

Etobicoke General Hospital main entrance view image courtesy of Walsh Construction

The interior design and architectural expression of the hospital as observed in the renderings are streamlined and minimalistic yet modern with warm earth tones accented by occasional splashes of colour. The new main entrance and other public gathering areas benefit from a series of skylights which allows the space to be filled with natural light. The design also provides vistas of greenery through its windows, taking advantage of the hospital's position overlooking the West Humber River park lands.

Etobicoke General Hospital cafeteria and retail lounge image courtesy of Walsh Construction

The LEED silver-targeted building will also house new acute care and sub-specialty care centres. These include cardiology, respiratory and neuro-diagnostic centres, a critical care unit, and emergency department, a medical day care unit, a labour and delivery NICU for women and children, and a satellite diagnostic imaging unit. New support services will be offered, such as materials management, patient food services and corporate registration. Additionally, the hospital will have a new retail space and cafeteria.

Walsh Canada says the new additions to the hospital were designed to improve accessibility and increase operational efficiency. Craig Lesurf, the President and Business Group Leader for Walsh Canada said the company is "excited to deliver this challenging project that will expand the delivery of healthcare options for the local communities served by William Osler Healthcare System.”

The "substantial completion" date of the project is set for June 2018, and the targeted final completion date is set for early 2019. We will update you on the redevelopment as it progresses, but in the meantime, more information and more renderings can be found in our dataBase file, linked below. Want to share your thoughts on the project? Feel free to leave a comment in the space below, or join in the ongoing conversation in our associated Forum thread.