Work starts on new medical hub
A new $7 million medical hub is under construction in Pa¯pa¯moa.
The new 1200sq m commercial build will include a large medical centre which developer Daryl Scott hoped to one day make a 24-hour service.
Mr Scott said the total project would cost about $7m and was expected to be completed by April next year.
The hub included six tenancies with four spots already filled by the medical centre, pharmacy, physio and another international brand yet to be announced.
Scott, who was developing the building with wife Heidi, said the new high-quality medical hub would benefit Pa¯pa¯moa’s growing population and create about 70 new jobs in the area.
“It will be a huge benefit for the local Pa¯pa¯moa and Te Puke community,” he said.
“It is about making a difference and having something that serves the community.”
Mr Scott said he was motivated to make the medical centre a 24-hour medical centre but that was still just a possibility at this stage.
The medical hub was next to the Papamoa Beach Village on the corner of Te Okuroa Dr and Parton Rd and in front of the new childcare centre Bloom, also developed by Daryl and Heidi.
Mr Scott said it was a prime location halfway between “old Pa¯pa¯moa and new Pa¯pa¯moa“.
“Being across from the retirement village, high school and one of Pa¯pa¯moa’s busiest roundabouts, I don’t think you would find another high-profile site in Pa¯pa¯moa,” he said.
Pa¯pa¯moa mother Alana Ibbetson was rushed to Tauranga Hospital after her waters broke in May last year. She told the Bay of Plenty Times at the time that she could have dodged traffic and made it to the hospital 10 minutes earlier if there was a medical centre in Pa¯pa¯moa.
Now pregnant with her second child, Ibbetson said a medical centre close to her home would be beneficial, especially if it was open 24 hours.
“As long as it is affordable then I think the whole community will get behind it,” she said.
“A lot of it will come down to pricing, especially with another kid on the way.”
She said between herself and her babies she would probably go to the doctors once every six months.
“It’s the time you take, money you spend on petrol and parking to get to the hospital in town as well.”
Raewyn Allen, who also lived in Pa¯pa¯moa, said the local healthcare options were not enough for the growing population. “It is just growing so fast out here,” she said.
Her 7-year-old daughter suffered a major injury when she was double-bounced on a trampoline last year and was in a wheelchair for about three months.
“Thankfully nothing like that will happen again . . . but if there was something out here it would make a huge difference,” she said.
Priority One communications and projects manager Annie Hill said the new medical hub meant Pa¯pa¯moa residents would not have to drive across town to obtain medical services.
Ms Hill said the possibility of a 24-hour medical service would allow residents to access emergency services and would be crucial to mitigating health issues and potentially saving lives.
Bay of Plenty MP Todd Muller said the lack of a 24-hour medical centre in Pa¯pa¯moa had been a real issue for the suburb’s growing population and it was something he had been campaigning for in the lead-up to last year’s election.
“The growing community needs an accident and emergency service and if developers see that as part of future plans, I’m sure the community will get behind it.”