Hospital plans call for a new building

Published 12:33 pm Thursday, December 11, 2008

By Kevin Hanson

The Courier-Herald

Big changes are in store for Enumclaw Community Hospital.

According to a plan of action adopted by the facility's board of directors, a new hospital will be built on land directly north of the current building, the existing site will be converted for non-patient services and part of the current hospital will be demolished to make room for additional parking.

The community will see no changes in the near future, but that doesn't mean plans aren't actively being carried out, said Dennis Popp, hospital administrator. The hoped-for timeline, Popp said, goes like this: the planning process continues through the remainder of the year; detailed plans, including work with engineers and architects, takes place in 2006; construction begins in 2007; and the new facility is ready for patients in 2008.

It's too early to talk exact dollars and cents, but the total project cost should be somewhere between $10 million and $15 million, Popp said.

"One of the most challenging tasks facing hospital administration and the board is planning effectively for the future in light of a constantly changing healthcare environment," Popp said. "For some time, we discussed renovating our existing structure and adding space." It was determined, however, that expansion wouldn't suffice. "State and national experts agree that meeting future technology needs will require new facilities," Popp added.

Hospital officials have decided to build a new facility on land directly north of the existing hospital, across Battersby Avenue. The new structure would include everything for patient needs, including an emergency room, maternity ward, laboratory, surgical unit and outpatient services. Popp figures it will be somewhere between 75,000 to 100,000 square feet in size.

Plans call for the newest parts of the current hospital to remain and be used for the business office, record keeping and administration. The older portions of the current hospital will be leveled.

Traffic on Battersby Avenue would not be impacted by the arrangement, as plans call for a tunnel to connect the two buildings.

The hospital owns most of the block north of Battersby, but would like to acquire another parcel or two, Popp said.

When it comes to financing a new hospital, Popp said the board has some cash on hand and would need to borrow the rest. "The hospital has been building some reserves, cautiously," he said, noting about $4 million can be put toward the project.

The rest, he said, would have to be raised via the bond market, noting the hospital is in much better financial condition than it was just a couple of years ago. The difference is that it has been designated a "critical access hospital," meaning a lot more money is taken in when the hospital cares for Medicare patients. Prior to 2004, the hospital received about 65 cents for every dollar it billed for patients covered by the federal Medicare program; since earning the "critical access hospital" designation, Medicare pays to the tune of 101 percent, realizing the hospital needs to make a profit to remain healthy.

About 40 percent of the hospital's patients are covered by Medicare, "and that makes us a much better customer in the eyes of lenders," Popp said.

Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@cmg-northwest2.go-vip.net/courierherald.