Thu, 06 Apr 2017
Council approved a comprehensive plan to safely demolish the former hospital and Helen Lawson buildings – marking a big step forward in the town’s five-year redevelopment plans of the former hospital site.
The overall demolition and remediation plan includes an abatement strategy for designated substances found in the buildings and on site, as well as best management practices the town will use to address community concerns over site maintenance, dust, noise, vibration and truck traffic during the demolition process.
“The town and all members of council are committed to safely deconstructing the former hospital and Helen Lawson buildings and we are confident our demolition strategy will successfully guide the process. The community consultations we’ve held to date were critical in getting us to this point and we will continue to keep you informed throughout the project,” said Oakville Mayor Rob Burton.
In response to recent public feedback at the Administrative Services Committee (ASC) meeting last week, Council approved recommendations by ASC for additional mitigation measures including using ‘broadband’ backup alarms on trucks instead of backup beepers, and avoiding crushing or other noisy work on Saturdays.
This summer, the contractors will begin site preparation. The overall demolition and site remediation will take approximately 12 months to complete. The development of the new community centre will begin in late 2018 with an opening scheduled for fall 2020.
A Special Council Meeting will be held on May 2 where Council will hear about the Parks, Recreation, Libraries Master Plan update, the proposed amenities and program requirements for the community centre, and the next steps in the project regarding the overall site planning options.
Further public engagement about the community centre, park and future residential will take place this spring before coming back to Council in June.
The former site of the Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital (OTMH) was part of the town's overall South Central Public Lands Study (SCPLS) which reviewed a number of key sites owned by the town in south central Oakville (e.g. surplus school sites, Oakville Arena) and made recommendations about their future use, including recreation uses.
Find more information by visiting our Former Hospital Site Project page and by signing up for email updates from the town.