It’s been a year since shovels went in the ground for the new South Niagara Hospital (SNH), and the progress made to-date is significant.
On July 18 last year, close to 300 people joined honourable guests Premier Doug Ford, Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, and Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure, alongside various partners, for the groundbreaking ceremony. It was a symbolic day that launched the five-year construction project to bring a new state-of-the-art hospital to the Niagara region.
Since then, crews with EllisDon Infrastructure Healthcare (EDIH) have made impressive progress on construction of this long-awaited hospital, which will be a vital cornerstone of Niagara Health’s three-site hospital system. Excavation for the foundation and basement level is complete, including the insertion of more than 1,250 steel piles into the bedrock to support the building foundation. Elevator shafts and stairwells are taking shape, and the majority of the site services have been completed, including waterlines, stormwater and sanitary sewers. Electrical work is also progressing well. In May, construction moved above ground level as work began on the superstructure. Currently crews are working on the first three floors of the building. Over the next two years, the community will be able to watch the building grow floor by floor until it reaches its 12-storey peak at an impressive 61-metres tall.
On average, there are more than 200 workers on-site each day, and in time it is anticipated that more than 1,000 skilled labourers will be working daily during peak construction periods. To date, many of these workers have been from local sub-contractors, signifying EDIH’s commitment to supporting the local workforce and businesses.
Behind-the-scenes, Niagara Health staff have been working closely with partners at EDIH and Infrastructure Ontario to finalize the hospital design. Since February 2023, hundreds of staff, physicians and patient and community partners have spent more than 4,500 hours working together with Niagara Health’s redevelopment team to put the finishing touches on the hospital design. This process will be complete in the fall, and will include feedback received during high-fidelity room mock-ups, where eight rooms from the SNH have been built to scale with real furniture, fixtures, finishes and equipment. This is an important piece of the design development process, giving users an opportunity to walk through real physical spaces, which helps them to make important decisions about the final hospital layout and design.
Located in Niagara Falls at the corner of Montrose and Biggar roads, the South Niagara Hospital Project is on track for completion in 2028. It will offer a full scope of hospital services, including emergency, critical care, diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical services, and feature Centres of Excellence in complex care, wellness in aging and stroke. The SNH will feature an Indigenous healing space and garden, co-designed with Indigenous partners to create a safe and welcoming space for all Indigenous Peoples.
Niagara Health is also working towards making the SNH the first WELL-certified hospital in Canada, as a building that incorporates design elements that focus on the health and well-being of people working in, and using, the facility. By blending innovation and wellness, the 1.3-million-square-foot hospital will be a state-of-the-art facility that will help attract the top healthcare professionals and improve the overall care experience for patients and families.
Quotes:
“We are very proud of our Niagara Health teams and the crews working on this project for reaching this exciting milestone. Our partners at EllisDon Infrastructure Healthcare have accomplished so much in the last year, and are on schedule to complete this project in 2028. The South Niagara Hospital is truly going to be an exceptional facility for both our patients and our staff, and we are eagerly anticipating the positive changes in healthcare that this new hospital will bring to our region.”
-Lynn Guerriero, President and CEO, Niagara Health
“We’re four years away from opening the doors to patients at this incredible new facility. The journey has been inspiring, and we continue to be overwhelmed by the generosity and support of our community and donors. Thanks to your unwavering commitment to the It’s Our Future campaign, we will be able to support Niagara Health in delivering a new state-of-the-art hospital to Niagara residents in 2028. This hospital will provide exceptional care, advanced medical technology, and a healing environment for all who walk through its doors. Together, we are building more than just a hospital. We are building a healthier future for our community. Thank you for your continued support and generosity.
-Andrea Scott, President and CEO, Niagara Health Foundation
“As we hit the one-year milestone of the groundbreaking on the South Niagara Hospital project, it’s thrilling to see the progress the team has made. Not only does it show everyone’s hard work and drive, it showcases our dedication to teamwork and partnership with Niagara Health and other fellow partners on site. With above ground work starting in May, the positive changes seen are both visible and exciting for our project teams but most importantly, the Niagara community. EllisDon Infrastructure Healthcare is proud of the progress thus far, and we look forward to building on this momentum by working with our amazing partners at Niagara Health to bring the community of Niagara a new 12-storey modernized hospital.”
-Andrew Anderson, Senior Vice President & Area Manager, Toronto, EllisDon
“We are incredibly proud of our partners as we mark one year since the start of construction on this state-of-the-art health care project. The new South Niagara Hospital is an outstanding example of IO’s work to deliver on a new generation of healthcare projects in innovative ways. Designed with input from surrounding communities, the new hospital will include Indigenous healing spaces and is working towards being the first WELL-certified hospital in Canada. We look forward to seeing progress continue on this extraordinary new facility.”
-Michael Lindsay, President and CEO, Infrastructure Ontario
