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Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums expressed his support for Children's Hospital Oakland.

Councilwoman Jane Brunner and Council President Ignacio De La Fuente also came to the press conference to show their support for Children's rebuilding in Oakland.

 

Harold Davis (above, at podium), chairman, Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland’s board of directors, announced at a hospital press conference on Sept. 5 that the board has approved a plan to rebuild Children’s Hospital next to its current site.

“Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland will remain in Oakland, and it will remain and expand in its current site,” Harold declared.

Attending the conference in support of Children’s announcement was Oakland’s Mayor Ron Dellums, City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente, and Councilperson Jane Brunner, who represents Children’s north Oakland district.

“It’s with extraordinary pleasure that I witness this announcement that Children’s Hospital will stay here in Oakland,” Mayor Dellums said. “First, clearly Children’s Hospital is an icon in the city of Oakland and in this region, for its extraordinary service to children, the most precious resource in our community. It has demonstrated tremendous excellence in the treatment of children and secondly, (because) this is a world-class research center as well.”

The plan
The new hospital will be constructed on land between 52nd and 53rd Streets, and from Highway 24 in the east to the back of the parking garage and Outpatient Center in the west (aerial view map below shows current site in blue and new site in orange).

Once completed the project will increase the hospital’s capacity from 171 on-site beds to approximately 250 private patient rooms. The identified site is about one-and-a-half acres, which may require a 12-story building to accommodate the hospital’s needs.

Children’s will continue to operate in its current facility during construction, which is expected to begin in 2010 and must be completed by 2013 to meet the state’s deadline for seismic upgrades.

Public input
Children’s has already begun holding community meetings to present the building project to the hospital’s neighbors, solicit input and listen to concerns from residents.

“We realize this building project will impact our neighbors and it is our commitment to preserve their quality of life as much as possible,” said Mary Dean, senior vice president, external affairs. “To succeed, this project must be a partnership with the neighborhood, city and county.”

The first community meeting for residents most directly affected by the construction and new building was held on Tuesday, Sept. 4, in the Outpatient Center. A second meeting for the community at large is scheduled for Sept. 13, from 7 to 9 p.m., at the North Oakland Senior Center, next to Children’s research institute. This will be the first of many community-wide exchanges.

The hospital board is “committed to respecting and partnering with our neighbors as part of the planning process,” says Venita Robinson, director, media and community relations.

The hospital already owns many of the properties it plans to build on, and is in talks to acquire the rest.

“This is an historic time for our hospital and the community that depends on our services,” said Frank Tiedemann, Children’s president and CEO, about the project. “The construction of our new medical center provides a long awaited opportunity to match the excellence of our medical staff with a superb facility. We’re treating an increasing number of children with some of the most complex and serious illnesses. We need a new building to give them the best possible healthcare experience.”

Financing
The hospital plans to finance the proposed $600-700 million project through three sources: $173 million in past and future state bonds, $150 raised through private donations and $300 million from a $2 per month county parcel tax measure that is expected to be on the ballot in February 2008.

The expansion plans also must be approved by the city with community input. Councilperson Brunner said she thinks the expansion can happen. "We were very successful with Kaiser (and its expansion) and we know we'll be successful with Children's Hospital," she said.

95-year history
While the hospital contemplated building in other locations, in the end, those sites proved to be too small, too expensive or on land that required a lot of environmental cleanup.

After intense evaluations by engineers and architects, the board decided that the most feasible location is right here in Children's neighborhood, with easy access to public transportation and a 95-year history to build upon.

Stay tuned to this page for updates and news about this exciting development.

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