Three potential sites remain for new Waterloo Region hospital

The panel tasked with selecting the site of the new state-of-the-art hospital in Waterloo Region has narrowed the options down to a trio of locations, which have not been publicly named.

Former Mayor of Kitchener Carl Zehr is Chair of the selection panel and said why the locations aren’t being publicly named.

“We know the community is very interested in knowing which sites have been shortlisted for the site selection process. There are a few reasons why the Site Selection Panel cannot share these locations at this time. In addition to maintaining the integrity of the selection process, it’s important the locations remain confidential to avoid the possibility of inappropriate speculation of lands of the shortlisted sites,” said Zehr.

“Depending on its location, the development of the recommended site of the new hospital is very likely to increase the land value of the surrounding area. The process also requires Ministry approval before we can make the selected site public. We want to reassure the community the Panel is evaluating the sites based on thorough criteria developed by extensive engagement with community members.”

Phase one was about determining how many of the five submissions met minimum criteria. Phase two will see the panelists evaluate the three sites in more depth.

The Site Selection Panel will make the recommendation to the Building the Future of Care Together committee and the boards at Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital.

Zehr told CityNews 570 that the decision will based on a scoring system. Sites larger than 50 acres, closer to population density, more accessible by car or transit and cost less will score higher.

He added that there was a public survey that highlighted the public’s main concern.

“There were over 11,000 individual people in our community who completed that survey and by a large percentage, the main concern that they had was the accessibility of the facility. 11,000 is an extraordinary number. It’s helpful to have that kind of impact from the public at large.”

There will be another opportunity for public input at a free town hall on Jan. 16. You can pre-register to attend here.

The site for the new state-of-the art hospital was meant to be selected before the end of 2023, but Zehr predicted the process to be over in early spring.