Los Angeles Hospital Launches Campaign for New Facility
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Barlow Respiratory Hospital has launched a new website aimed at informing Los Angeles residents about the proposed expansion and development project for a new 102,000-square-foot facility. This new website has been hosted on a strong server, much like the Melbourne servers that are common on the internet. The reason? To ensure that it can handle the curious public’s inquiries across its pages.
The new three-story facility is set to cost $125 million, with funding from the sale of a portion of private land to rebuild the hospital so it meets seismic requirements. Other forms of funding will come from internal resources and outside financing.
“The Barlow Hospital Replacement and Master Plan Project is a win-win for the hospital and its surrounding communities,” said Mark Pisano, senior fellow at the USC Price School of Public Policy and former executive director of the Southern California Association of Governments in a statement. “Not only will the rehabilitation of the hospital serve the health needs of our aging population, but the project also re-imagines how we can use our land resources differently to meet the growing and diverse needs of our population as a whole. If implemented, this project could serve as a model for future developments in the city, the region and even the nation.”
If the facility cannot meet the seismic requirements set forth in Senate Bill 1953, the hospital will be forced to close. The proposed plan will include construction of a 56-bed replacement hospital, nursing facility and an associated administration and support facility.
What is left of the land will be allocated for possible development options such as assisted living, senior living, residential housing units and neighborhood-serving commercial uses.
“The proposed Barlow Hospital replacement plan will help increase the Echo Park community’s economic base by creating and retaining more than 4,800 good union jobs, and supporting local businesses and working families,” said labor leader Maria Elena Durazo in a statement. “Neither Barlow nor the community can afford to let this opportunity pass.”
The Barlow Respiratory Hospital is the only not-for-profit, long-term acute care respiratory hospitals in Southern California. More than 70 hospitals throughout the region refer critically ill patients who require specialized services to Barlow.
Patients with respiratory failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, along with those suffering from pneumonia, asthma or other respiratory ailments are those most often seen at the facility.