Catholic Vancouver August 17, 2020
$1 billion sale of St. Paul’s site paves way for new hospital
By Agnieszka Ruck
The downtown Vancouver property on which St. Paul’s Hospital has stood for 126 years has been sold to Concord Pacific, a private residential and commercial real estate business.
The sale is the latest development in the plan to move the aging St. Paul’s Hospital from its current site at 1081 Burrard Street to a new Jim Pattison Medical Centre slated to be built just outside Vancouver’s downtown core at 1002 Station St.
“We’re extremely pleased with this sale,” said Fiona Dalton, president and CEO of Providence Health Care in a press release Aug. 12.
The proceeds of the sale, nearly $1 billion in total, will be invested into the new St. Paul’s Hospital. Dalton estimates this investment is the largest non-governmental contribution to a project like this in B.C., and possibly Canada.
“It is a unique achievement in Canada that enables us to invest in B.C.’s health care system while minimizing the cost to taxpayers, and continues to build on our 126-year legacy of compassionate and innovative care, research, and teaching.”
Concord Pacific president and CEO Terry Hui said the company is honoured to be selected as the purchaser of the Burrard site, and senior vice president Peter Webb described it as “an extraordinary opportunity.”
Providence Health Care and Concord Pacific have committed to working together to keep St. Paul’s Hospital running at the current site for the next few years as the new hospital is built.
The provincial government is contributing $1.158 billion to the project, while St. Paul’s Foundation aims to raise another $225 million. The rest of the funds to build the hospital will come from the proceeds of the sale of the Burrard site.
The Sisters of Providence founded St. Paul’s Hospital in 1894. It has remained on the same site for all of its 126 years, undergoing various upgrades and renovations from a 25-bed cottage to the hospital it is today.
The new St. Paul’s Hospital is anticipating a 2026 opening.
At a press conference Aug. 12, Health Minister Adrian Dix said “the project is on track and moving forward, and that’s good news for everybody in Vancouver, but also everyone in B.C. who uses St. Paul’s.”
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