Plan could bring new facilities to AV Hospital
It’s taken years and despite the issues with aging the Antelope Valley Hospital is facing, construction of a new facility has still not begun.
That could change in the near future, however.
The process got another start on No. 18, when the Antelope Valley Healthcare District Board of Directors approved a letter of intent with a firm that facilitates investment in federally designated zones targeted for economic development.
The letter is with Portland, Ore.based Fiat Lux Motux, a Qualified Opportunity Fund that invests in building new hospitals and clinics in under-served areas, among other projects.
The Antelope Valley Hospital campus sits in what’s considered a qualified opportunity zone — an area designated by the federal government as an economically distressed community targeted for new investment, with tax benefits from the investors.
FLM will act as a go-between in the federal program, directing investment from private companies to projects in these zones, according to AV Hospital CEO Ed Mirzabegian.
The funds would be used to build a state-of-the-art facility. The district, with help from the City of Lancaster and LA County state regulators, would manage the development.
There also would be no up-front costs to the healthcare district, which governs the hospital. After a decade, the district could buy the physical hospital facility, but not the business side, at 70% of the appraised value at the time. During the 10 years, the district won’t pay any rent for the facility, but will have to maintain it and pay operating costs.
Construction and outfitting is expected to take about three years. The new facility would have 350 beds and be four stories.
A new facility is much-needed, but so far, attempts to get funding for it have been unsuccessful. The district attempted, twice, to raise the money necessary through voter-approved bond measures, but they both failed — one in 2018 and the other in 2020.
Regardless, the hospital faces physical space constraints and a pressing need to meet current seismic standards. If they don’t get the problem fixed soon, a considerable portion of the hospital could be deemed as unusable. Some of the original buildings date back to 1955. The problem areas that don’t meet seismic standards cannot be retrofitted to meet today’s standards and therefore, must be replaced.
It sounds like the healthcare district could be well on its way to getting a new facility if the funding plan works out, let’s hope this plan isn’t too-good-to-be true. Stay tuned.