PCL shortlisted to design, build hospital tower

NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C. — PCL Constructors West Coast has been selected by the Province of B.C. as the preferred proponent to design and build a new acute-care patient tower at Lions Gate Hospital (LGH).

“With the selection of a preferred proponent for the design-build contract, we are now one step closer to getting shovels in the ground for the new acute-care tower at LGH,” said Adrian Dix, minister of health, in a statement. “Our government is proud to move forward on our promise to British Columbians to deliver a new tower at LGH so that residents on the North Shore can access state-of-the-art, quality public health care.”

Vancouver Coastal Health received proposals from two shortlisted proponents for the design-build contract to build the tower. The official name for the new tower will be the Paul Myers Tower.

Myers started his career as an apprentice plumber and went on to own Keith Plumbing and Heating. He donated $25 million to the project.

The new acute-care facility will replace aging infrastructure with a modern structure. Officials intend for it to be a hub for acute and virtual services for people on the North Shore and throughout the coastal region.

The tower’s design will include eight new operating rooms, a new pre-operative and post-operative care area (including anesthesia intervention and isolation rooms), 108 single-patient rooms with ensuite bathrooms, a telehealth centre and a primary care centre to give residents without a family doctor faster access to non-acute services.

Construction is expected to begin later this year.

“This is a very exciting step forward for our community and one that comes down to generosity of spirit,” said Judy Savage, president and CEO of the LGH Foundation. “We’re so grateful to Paul Myers for his inspirational lead gift, which served as a catalyst in rallying together the more than 6,400 members of our community who so generously supported our campaign to build the new tower at LGH.”

The project budget of $310 million is cost shared between the province, Vancouver Coastal Health and a $100-million fundraising campaign by the LGH Foundation.