A healthy future for Midland and surrounding communities is yet another step closer, with a traditional construction ‘topping out’ ceremony held to mark the St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals reaching their full height recently.
A commemorative Pomegranate tree was hoisted onto the roof of what is now the tallest building in Midland to coincide with the last major concrete pour and 43 per cent construction completion.
The St John of God Health Care and Brookfield Multiplex project team were joined by the Hon Helen Morton MLC, Minister for Mental Health; Disability Services; Child Protection and member for East Metropolitan Region, as well as representatives from WA Health and the local community.
St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals CEO, Ian Anderson confirmed that the hospitals are on track to open in late 2015.
“In addition to the building progress, we are well ahead in planning the new and expanded free public health services that we will deliver to patients when the new public hospital opens and Swan District Hospital closes two years from now.”
St John of God Health Care is also building a 60-bed integrated private hospital that will offer the choice of private health care.
Brookfield Multiplex’s Regional Managing Director, Chris Palandri said in addition to the hospitals’ construction reaching the 43 per cent milestone, it is on schedule and on budget.
The project represents a joint investment of $360 million by State and Commonwealth Governments in the public hospital that will be operated by St John of God Health Care under a public private partnership agreement.
The WA-based private health care operator is investing $70 million in the private hospital.
Following the ‘topping out’ (a ceremony that can be traced to the ancient Scandinavian religious practice of placing a tree on the top of a new building to appease the tree-dwelling spirits of their ancestors that had been displaced), the tree will be nurtured at a local nursery and later planted in the grounds.