About Us
Snoqualmie Valley Hospital Relocation FAQ
Why is the hospital moving?
Our hospital is one of the smallest in the region serving the fastest growing population in Washington State. Simply stated, the rapidly growing demand for local healthcare and new technology will soon exceed the physical and staffing capacity of the current facility. The steep, forested site and environmental restrictions make expansion of the current hospital building difficult and expensive. The new location will be much easier to find and faster to get to for most local residents; it is easily accessible from I-90, SR-18 and other major roads. This is important because emergency and first responders along with patients and their families report the current hospital location is secluded and hard to find. This is due in part because the closest interstate exit doesn’t have on-and-off ramps from all directions. In addition, the new facility will have ample parking space available for employees, patients, families and other visitors.
Will the new hospital be bigger?
Yes. At about 60,000 square feet, the new facility will double the size of the current hospital. It will allow for a significant expansion in the number and types of out-patient services while retaining the same number of hospital beds at twenty five. The new campus is 8.77 acres and will include room for future expansion.
What services will the new hospital provide?
The new hospital will mostly expand existing services and update technology. The new hospital will have individual, private inpatient rooms, inpatient and outpatient physical therapy, a larger emergency department, women’s health services, senior health services, rehabilitation services, a larger gastroenterology service, expanded laboratory services, imaging and diagnostic services and will also accommodate an enlarged primary and specialty care clinic. The new hospital will also have storage spaces for all the equipment that had not been invented yet when the existing hospital was built. Plus, the new facility will have expanded electrical, data, and utility systems to support all the computers and electronics in use in today’s healthcare services.
What will the new hospital cost?
Total costs for the new hospital facility is estimated at $30 million.
How will it be paid for?
No new taxes will be needed for the new building. The hospital will be financed from a number of sources, including sale of the existing campus, and possibly from tax-exempt bonds, and/or financing from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development or other sources. The hospital recently invited developers to submit proposals for public-private partnerships including a variety of methods of financing the new hospital; those proposals are currently being evaluated.
Will doctors in the area move out of the neighborhoods and onto this new campus? The providers that are located at the hospital and in the two on-campus clinics (Primary Care Clinic, Snoqualmie Specialty Clinic) will move with the hospital to the new campus. The expanded space will allow for more provider availability and perhaps expanded services in the future. Neighborhood primary care providers (including pediatricians) and their support staff will remain in the community where they are now.
What is the timeline for construction?
Construction is expected to begin some time in 2012 and will take about a year.
Will the hospital stay open during construction?
Yes, the hospital will continue to operate at its current location until the new hospital is ready to open.
I’ve heard that the Snoqualmie Tribe is involved with the hospital. What’s that about?
The Snoqualmie Tribe has purchased the existing hospital campus. The proceeds from that sale are helping to pay for the new facility. The sale agreement provides for the hospital to continue to occupy the existing building until the new one
is constructed.
What’s up with the old campground across from the hospital site? Is the hospital involved with that?
Yes, the hospital has agreed to purchase that site with the idea that services can be expanded there in the future.