Hospital project enters into final financing phases

At a special meeting last Thursday, the Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees signed documents to issue revenue bonds for the purpose of financing the addition and renovation of the hospital.

Hospital CEO Margie Molitor explained the bank will officially close on this Thursday, Dec. 20, and the USDA, architects and construction staff are doing pre-construction meetings this week. Following those steps, she said, construction on the project could begin at any time.

It’s the final steps in a project that has been two years in the works, but not the first time the project has been presented.

Upgrades to the facility were discussed in 2011, and the establishment of a hospital district was shot down in the 2013 election. During the 2016 election, the majority of more than 1,600 voted for two propositions for the hospital — one to establish a hospital district, the other to establish a one percent tax to provide for the renovation and expansion of the hospital.

Since those decisions, the past couple years have been a whirlwind of securing additional financing for the project, consulting firm, architects and construction firm.

Following the passing of the district tax proposition, the hospital chose Piper Jaffrey as the financial consultant for the project in February 2017. The same year, they went through requests for qualifications and proposals between April and July, ultimately choosing to work with Sletten Construction and Plan1 Architects.

Later in 2017, the board and hospital staff went to sites in Wyoming and Montana to look at hospitals that have done renovations or new builds to get good ideas of best practices. Further, a financial feasibility study was also completed and December of 2017 saw the completion of the schematic design.

The most recent happenings for the project have been a $21,346,000 loan through the USDA, and establishing the guaranteed maximum price of $19,595,049 for the project.

Though a definitive start date has not been set, the plan is to begin construction on the east side of the current building. As that completes, services will be moved into the new space to allow for renovation to the existing space. The hospital is also collaborating with the adjoining Gottsche facility and its remodeling work. The work on the hospital has been projected to be complete by late 2020.