OHH Sets October for New Licensing Inspection

Construction on Olney Hamilton Hospital’s new facility is entering its final stretch, board chairman Dale Lovett told the board July 31, sharing a slide show from a recent walk-through of the site with the project’s on-site supervisor.

Mr. Lovett walked the board through recent progress, including installation of the facility’s emergency generator — a roughly 50,000-pound unit — paired with a storage tank that holds 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel.

Electrical work is largely complete on the wiring side, with what Mr. Lovett described as “millions of wires” and equipment racks installed throughout the building, along with extensive Cat5 networking cable. However, the project is now waiting on Square D, the manufacturer of several electrical panels, to send technicians to install specific panels — work that can’t be done by local electrical contractors.

Interior work is progressing on the surgery, radiology, and imaging areas, where crews are installing doors. Exterior concrete work is largely finished: Avenue M has been fully poured, sidewalks along Hamilton Street are complete, and crews poured the entry ramp this week. The last major concrete pour — on the north side, near the alley — has not yet been scheduled.

Mr. Lovett relayed an update from the project’s finance representative, Dave Lilley, saying furniture for the new hospital has been fully ordered and 75 percent paid for, and signage has been ordered as well. The contractor’s current estimate is about 90 days to substantial completion, followed by another 30 days to address a standard “punch list” of remaining items.

Acting CEO Stasha Siegert told the board the state has already scheduled its licensing visit for October 19 — though she cautioned that inspectors won’t necessarily arrive on that exact date or even that week, since the date simply marks when the hospital becomes eligible for inspection.

Mr. Lovett said construction crews are aiming to reopen West Hamilton Street in “the latter part of August” at the earliest, but stressed the hospital doesn’t want to open prematurely, adding that the street won’t be open in time for the Aug. 12 start of the school year.

Due to construction at the current hospital’s main entrance in late August, West Hamilton will remain closed, hospital officials said.

During construction, the hospital’s main parking lot along Hamilton Street will remain closed so that the new hospital’s front lot can be used for existing hospital patients and staff. Patients will park in the new lot and walk across Hamilton Street to enter through the current building’s old front entrance — near where the flagpole used to stand — until construction wraps up.

Hospital staff is meeting this week to finalize maps of the temporary parking arrangement, which will then be publicized for patients and visitors.

Board member Carl Craig asked Mr. Lovett to arrange a full board walkthrough of the new facility, which Lovett said he would try to schedule for next month. Mr. Lovett noted that a similar walkthrough with representatives of the Olney Hamilton Hospital Foundation is also being planned.