Public should get look at new Quincy hospital design by April

QUINCY — Quincy residents should get a look at the design of the new Quincy Valley Medical Center by the end of April.

“I expect with the finishing of all this stuff, we will have renderings of the facility for public consumption in the next 30 to 60 days,” QVMC consultant helping coordinate the new facility, Joe Kunkel said.

Kunkel said the design teams will be making a number of decisions on building specifications over the next two months.

Kunkel updated QVMC board members at the regular meeting Monday.

Board members selected Graham Construction and Engineering, Spokane, as the general contractor for the project at a special meeting Feb. 6. Kunkel said the contractors are evaluating the decisions made to date to see how much they will cost, and if they fit within the existing budget. District voters approved a construction bond for up to $55 million in August 2022 to pay for the project.

The design team has made some changes to the existing master facilities plan, adding some services and equipment, including a CT scanner in the diagnostic imaging department and a small pool in the physical therapy department. Kunkel said those would have an impact on the project budget.

“Square footage is greater than the original plan,” Kunkel said. “Square footage usually drives costs. So we’re tying in the square footage with the cost estimates we’re getting right now, making sure where those two things reside, and ensure we’re staying within our budget that was put together and voted on by district (patrons).”

Kunkel said the review may require some changes to the design.

“We may have to go back if we need to, because we’ve added significant space for those things. The question is, does the budget still support those things, or are there ways to look at this differently? Do we need to think about scaling back in this first phase on some of those things to make sure we’re hitting that budget number?” Kunkel said.

“I’ve said this to our team many times, ‘The budget is the budget is the budget.’ There’s no little pocket of money over here on the side for us to be dipping into,” he added.

The design team has selected some of the mechanical systems, Kunkel said, and is working with hospital employees to come up with possible designs for in-room cabinets, sinks and storage. Hospital employees will then get to look at full-scale cardboard mockups to finalize the details.

Board members approved a contract for $9,750 with GSI Signs, Seattle, who will design, build and install some of the signs for the new hospital.

Kunkel said some signage is the responsibility of the contractor, citing the sign directing people to the emergency department as an example. In other cases, such as direction signs inside the building, are up to QVMC to buy and install.

Kunkel said the QVMC and city officials are working on the permits and other paperwork the hospital needs for construction. Hospital officials are working to get some of the applications submitted before July 1, when an updated energy code goes into effect.

A section of the QVMC property formerly was a small church, which came with a well. Hospital officials plan to move that well and use it for watering the property, Kunkel said.

“We just need to move it because it’s in the way,” he said.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.