Planning permission granted for Graaff-reinet’s new hospital
Great news for residents of Graaff-reinet and the surrounding towns is that planning permission has now been granted for the subdivision and rezoning of the land for the new private hospital and residential housing complex.
The project was first presented to the Graaff-reinet public in October last year, and a follow-up meeting in June gave more information about the proposed development and the progress at that stage.
The hospital, with its planned 100 beds, a neonatal unit, maternity ward, intensive care unit, high care unit and a key focus on preventive health care, will be of tremendous value to the local community.
In addition to the hospital, the developers are planning to build a lifestyle resort for active retirees at the same time.
This will have 200 residential units, with an additional 80 single-family apartments. These units will also serve as housing for hospital staff, which will overcome the anticipated problem of suitable housing being available for the staff. The purpose of the development is also to provide a comfortable lifestyle for residents, with the peace of mind that they are within a few minutes of specialised health care at the private hospital.
The entire project was approved in full in a council meeting held last month, with certain conditions imposed in terms of the Land Use Planning Ordinance. Many of these conditions are technical, in relation to the utilities and infrastructure, which have to comply with rigorous standards.
Other conditions include the conducting of a traffic impact assessment, the provision of a suitable access road of the required standard, and upgrading of the electricity supply to the area to meet the forecast demand. One very important condition that will please many people is that the development must be designed such that it blends in with the neighbouring areas, so there will be no “architectural bad manners” such as is often seen with new developments in a heritage town.
It has been estimated that the hospital will create about 300 new jobs, which will be a very welcome boost to the local economy. Not only medical professionals will be needed, but also support staff ranging from catering to cleaning and maintenance.
According to Johann Carstens, Macadamia Fund Representative, with regard to the construction of the hospital, they have put in place stringent measures regarding the tender process to ensure that all service providers involved in the project are able to provide quality services to the development, in accordance with the developers' standards and vision.