Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare (MAHC) has put forward 1975 Muskoka Beach Rd. as the preliminary preferred property for the future South Muskoka Memorial Hospital, but Bracebridge council wants to have their say on the location before it’s finalized.
Mayor Rick Maloney will be sending a letter to MAHC about the anticipated municipal services and land use impacts that would come through the preferred property and the other two properties still being considered for the new hospital.
The Muskoka Beach Rd. property was announced by MAHC as the preliminary preferred property during the organization’s second round of public open houses. The two locations still in contention are 300 Pine St. and land along Hwy. 118 W.
The letter, which will be sent to MAHC by Maloney on behalf of council, will look into the impact each of the three sites will have on municipal infrastructure – including roads and sidewalks, expansion and demand on the transit system, financial impact, how the sites could affect fire and emergency services, consistent with town land-use policies, impacts and opportunities for growth, and ensure MAHC looks at the site through a “community lens.”
In an interview with the MyMuskokaNow.com newsroom after the May 10 council meeting, Maloney said he’s pleased to see a new hospital will be built. “We think it’s a good site but at the same time we want to support MAHC as they go through their process,” he added.
Maloney pointed out that while the Muskoka Beach Rd. property is currently the preferred property, the site on Pine St., which was offered by the Town of Bracebridge, scored highly as well and is still under consideration.
“If [MAHC] has gone through that full process of evaluating the sites from not just the driveway into the site but the driveway out of the site and the impacts to the town from a taxpayer perspective,” said Maloney. “If they’ve done all that work, that’s all we can ask.”
