New wing planned to rise on site of the old Stella Maris building at the hospital. Photo / supplied
New wing planned to rise on site of the old Stella Maris building at the hospital. Photo / supplied
A big new wing is being built at Mercy Hospital in Epsom where other buildings are being upgraded.
Dr Ian England, chief executive of MercyAscot Private Hospitals, said the three-year programme to transform the property at 98 Mountain Rd started last year.
A new 6435sq m four-level 9m-high wing wouldhave operating theatres, a new intensive care unit with high-dependency beds and a new ward with single patient bedrooms, he said.
Once work is done, Mercy's floor area will be expanded from 17,000sq m to 23,000sq m.
Additional upgrades of the existing buildings and grounds had also begun to ensure specialists and staff could provide the best care for people England said.
The ageing Stella Maris building on the northern side of the property has been demolished to make way for the new wing.
Mercy Hospital as it was before work started. Photo / Auckland Council
Contractors separated that older building from adjacent buildings pre-demolition.
That involved knocking down walls, cutting foundations and floors to create a 3m physical separation between what was about to come down and what is staying.
Work was undertaken with contractors conscious that they needed to attempt to minimise noise and vibration which affect the main hospital operations, England said.
The main vehicle entrance off Mountain Rd to the front of the hospital has been barred to patients and visitors while the work is underway and that will continue till it is finished. People are being advised to drive into the 250-space car parking building off Mountain Rd instead.
The main entrance to Mercy Hospital, Mountain Rd, Epsom. Photo / supplied
This year, rock anchoring and piling and site excavation are underway. Construction of the main new hospital building isn't due to start till later this year and run all through next year and most of 2024.
Building the new hospital wing requires substantial piling work but the business said the piling rig used a drilling method, not pounding. That meant that while some noise was expected, fewer vibrations were expected.
Huge new wing being developed on the northern (lower right) side. Photo / Auckland Council
Commissioning and opening of the new wing's facilities are not due till around September 2024 although the business said dates would depend on the progress.
No budget for the work has been announced yet.
"Because the procurement process is underway, the quantity survey estimates, budget and costs of the project are commercially sensitive," a hospital spokesperson said today.
Auckland Council notified Mercy Ascot Properties' application to erect a giant luffer crane on the site for 24 months to undertake the work. That crane which can rise up to 60m will interfere with the protected volcanic view shaft of Maungawhau/Mt Eden.
The consultation was undertaken with the Tūpunga Maunga Authority.
The proposal involves parking, loading and access that does not comply with the permitted standards.
An artist's impression of how the entrance to the new wing could look. Photo / supplied
Addresses for the hospital on its 2.6ha site adjoining residential properties are 94 and 98 Mountain Rd, 3 and 15-17 Gilgit Rd.
Existing buildings are in a range of styles and ages, containing a mixture of hospital and healthcare activities, characterised by the Mercy Hospital buildings and the distinctive seven-storey Prendergast building within the centre of the site.
Plans are to widen the Auckland Radiology Oncology driveway that leads to Almorah Rd, to provide better access for ambulances and emergency vehicles.
Facilities on the site grew from a small cottage hospital originally run by the Sisters of Mercy about a century ago. The property has seven operating rooms and 155 beds, an ICU, high dependency unit, coronary care, pharmacy and cafe.
Mercy Hospital's owners also have the Ascot Hospital in Greenlane, Endoscopy Epsom on the same site as the redevelopment and Endoscopy North Shore on Taharoto Rd, Takapuna.
