Thursday, May 14, 2009

Hospitals' Planners Are Hopeful

By Rosalie Rayburn
Journal Staff Writer
      The current economic turmoil has not derailed plans for two proposed hospitals in Rio Rancho.
       UNM says it hopes to break ground this year on a $150 million hospital in City Center.
       Plans for Presbyterian Healthcare Services's hospital at Unser and Black Arroyo are stalled while the organization waits for economic conditions, and interest rates, to improve.
       Both organizations say they're committed to Rio Rancho.
       “We're hopeful that in the next several months we will have a positive announcement and we can move forward, ” Presbyterian spokesman Todd Sandman said.
       The Sandoval County manager says he is working with both organizations to negotiate contracts the County Commission will have a chance to review by late summer.
       The county has not collected any money from Sandoval County taxpayers who approved a 4.25 mill levy last fall for contracts to help support health services provided by the hospitals. Property owners will not start contributing a portion of their property taxes for the hospital services until after tax notices go out this fall.
       Last week, UNM's plans moved a step further along. The University of New Mexico Medical Group issued a request for proposals for architectural and engineering work for the teaching hospital that will be part of its UNM West Rio Rancho campus. UNM began construction on its first campus building in February and expects to open for classes in early 2010.
       Bids for UNM's 280,000-square-foot hospital and a 40,000-square-foot medical office building are due by the end of May, said Kim Hedrick, vice president for strategic business development at the UNM Medical Group.
       The group has not set a specific date to break ground on the hospital, but it is hoping to do so before the end of this year, Hedrick said.
       “We are moving heaven and earth to meet that deadline,” she said Tuesday.
       Hedrick acknowledged that the economic downturn and the tight credit market mean there are many variables still to be worked out.
       UNM Medical Group, a stand-alone nonprofit corporation owned by the university, has teamed with Legacy Hospital Partners Inc. of Plano, Texas, for the project.
       Initially, the hospital will have space for 75 beds but will be expandable to 120 beds. The medical office building will have space for up to 50 physicians and specialists, including community doctors who are not employed by the UNM Medical Group, Hedrick said.
       Meanwhile, Presbyterian is still watching the market and researching methods to secure the more than $200 million it needs to finance its project. The 340,000-square-foot hospital will have 120 private patient rooms, a women's health center with 12 labor and delivery rooms plus emergency room, operating room, laboratory and intensive- care facilities.
       Bills go out in fall
       The new levy will be included on property tax bills for 2009 that will be sent out in November. The first payments will fall due in December.
       The levy will increase the annual tax on a property assessed at $100,000 by about $142. County officials have estimated it will bring in $13.27 million annually. UNM and Presbyterian have said the money would be used to expand the range of specialist care they can offer. It will not be used to cover construction or operating costs for the hospitals.
       Sandoval County Manager Juan Vigil said he is working with UNM and Presbyterian and expects to have contracts ready for public review and comment before the County Commission by August.
       

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