No objections to Mediclinic’s new location
An application for a R1-billion regional private hospital with a heart unit to be developed by Mediclinic at the Mount View Resort is currently being re-advertised for public comment. The closing date for comments is 7 August.
The development covers several erven within the Mount View Resort in York Street, a property owned by the Thaba Development Trust (the owners of Mount View Resort).
Chantel Endwards-Klose, municipal communications chief, said no objections were received after the initial application was advertised in December 2019 and January 2020. “The municipality’s engineering departments are in discussion with the applicant’s consultants to clarify some technical matters which need to be resolved before the application can be processed further.”
Facilities in the hospital will include theatres, ICU, various wards, radiology, cardiology, paediatrics, and an emergency centre as well as a pharmacy, restaurant, consulting rooms, laundry and hospital kitchen, among others.
The three-storey building of about 25 746m2 is planned to make expansion possible. It will initially provide for about 215 beds. With future expansion, an additional 6 738m2 will be added to create a building of 32 484m2, providing an extra 72 beds. The main entrance to the hospital from York Street will be about 213m south of the current Mount View Resort entrance. A secondary access will be provided along the present Mount View entrance, where a servitude right of way will be registered for this purpose.
According to Marlize de Bruyn, the town planner who is handling the application, a private investment of R1-billion “is exactly what is needed for this underdeveloped side of the CBD”. De Bruyn’s motivation includes that the land use is not in conflict with any relevant spatial plan applicable to the property and that it is consistent with the policies of the municipality’s spatial development framework.
“It will revitalise and strengthen the CBD of George and support inward growth and development,” she says.
Mediclinic excited after five-year struggle
Mediclinic George manager Kassie Karstens says they are “extremely excited” about the new site following a five-year struggle to get the development off the ground after the rejection of their initial application on the sawmill site near the Garden Route Mall.
“This new site will allow us to still be part of the CBD, it has easy access to the N2 and George Airport, and the location will enhance inclusivity for all communities. It is next to the main bus route and Go George depot. We believe that the new hospital will be a catalyst for the town’s expansion towards the airport and will greatly enhance the town entrance.”
He did not want to reveal a construction starting date as yet, but says they will have to re-evaluate the viability of the project once the rezoning application has been finalised. “Mediclinic International must make the call. The company is also affected by the global economic climate that has resulted from many countries in lockdown. Building costs have also risen.
“It is a pity that the approval process has taken this long, because of certain individuals that have prevented our initial plans. The new hospital could have been in operation by now and its design would have made our task much less daunting during the Covid-19 pandemic. Before Covid-19 we had waiting lists for routine operations. Now it’s worse.”
Heart unit license approved
Mediclinic and the Department of Health are working together on plans for the heart unit that received a licence from the department.
Karstens says a public private partnership with the department is being planned through which state heart patients would be treated locally, instead of having to be flown to Cape Town and their families having to find accommodation in the city.