Martin Memorial has received permission to build an 80-bed hospital in the Tradition development to serve the residents of western St. Lucie County. The decision denies an appeal that sought to prevent the health system from building the hospital.
Martin Memorial received approval from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration in June 2007 to build the hospital on 20 acres in Tradition. That decision was appealed in July 2007 by Lawnwood Regional and St. Lucie medical centers, the two HCA Inc.-owned hospitals in St. Lucie County.
On July 31, Judge J.D. Parrish, an administrative law judge with the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings, upheld the state’s 2007 decision.
“We are pleased by the decision and look forward to providing access to critical medical care for residents of western St. Lucie County,” said Mark E. Robitaille, president and chief executive officer of Martin Memorial. “We will wait to see if there are further appeals, review all of our options and begin planning for the next stages of this process.”
The rapid population growth that took place in St. Lucie County – particularly west Port St. Lucie – over the past five years, as well as demonstrated access challenges in the region reveal a vital need for the hospital. Once the appeals process is completed, the design and construction phase of building a new hospital would take several years.
Support for the hospital has come from many areas of the community, including state legislators, local government officials, Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, Mann Research Center, doctors and nurses, and more than 10,000 area residents. Many individuals submitted personal testimonials sharing their concern about the lack of convenient access to a hospital – particularly in times of emergency. Once opened, the hospital will create more than 400 jobs and the capital investment will exceed $100 million, which will have a profoundly positive impact on the local economy.
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