Groves Hospital Redevelopment Plan to move forward
The Board, Foundation, and Staff of the Groves Memorial Community Hospital in Fergus deserve credit for their visionary hospital redevelopment proposal, says Waterloo-Wellington MPP Ted Arnott.
“For more than four years, the Hospital has been seeking the green light from the Minister of Health to proceed with planning for our needed hospital redevelopment project,” Mr. Arnott said. “The Government has finally approved a Proposal Development Grant, which means our project has been endorsed by the Ministry, and more detailed planning can proceed.”
In a press release dated May 18th, the Government gave the long awaited approval.
“This has been one of the most aggravating issues that I can recall during my 17 years in the Ontario Legislature,” Mr. Arnott said. “I raised the need for hospital improvements in every way I possibly could, in the Legislature, in private conversations with the Premier, the Minister of Health, and Minister of Public Infrastructure Renewal, repeatedly writing and calling the Minister's office, and meeting with senior Ministry Staff. We never received a satisfactory explanation as to why it was taking so long.”
But Mr. Arnott believes the real credit should go to the Hospital officials, and the community.
“As I've said before, of all the hospitals in Ontario today, not one has stronger community support than the Groves Memorial Community Hospital,” Mr. Arnott stated.
With a Provincial election campaign less than four months away, it would appear that the McGuinty Liberal Government did not want the delayed hospital redevelopment proposal to become an election issue, Mr. Arnott believes. “I'm sure that the Minister knew that we weren't going to accept anything less than an affirmative answer,” he concluded.
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