Just days after Ontario’s infrastructure minister suggested that costs for The Ottawa Hospital’s new Civic campus are increasing, a representative for the province’s health minister stated that the project has “evolved.”
The minister’s office didn’t provide an updated price estimate, including the “investment of just shy of $10 billion” mentioned by Infrastructure Minister David Piccini during a committee meeting last week.
Originally, the project was estimated to cost $2.8 billion, with the province set to contribute $2.1 billion and the “Ottawa community” responsible for covering the remaining $700 million.
According to a spokesperson for Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones, in an email sent to on Monday, “The project scope has since evolved, with additional work and requirements identified through the planning process.”
The spokesperson added that “The ministry has worked closely with the hospital to refine the scope and costs, accounting for factors that may not have been captured in the original submission, including the age and condition of existing infrastructure and the community’s evolving health care needs over decades ahead.”
In response to an interview request, it was also noted that the city has “an important role to play in supporting a major hospital project that will serve its residents.”
WATCH | Covering the infrastructure minister’s comments last week:
Costs appear to be rising for The Ottawa Hospital’s new Civic campus
The project’s initial budget was around $2.8 billion, with $2.1 billion from provincial funding. However, recent remarks from Ontario’s infrastructure minister indicate a significant rise in costs. Elyse Skura has been looking into these figures.
While there were no specific details provided about a new cost estimate from health minister’s spokesperson, it was mentioned that hospital development projects typically follow a funding model of “90 per cent provincial funding and 10 per cent local share.”
In 2022, city council was asked to contribute $150 million toward that community share of $700 million while most of it would be covered by a fundraising campaign. The Ottawa Hospital Foundation informed Thursday that they have raised $404 million so far.
This means that contributing that 10 percent share would amount nearly to one billion dollars from local sources.
In their own email Thursday, City of Ottawa indicated that staff will report back to councillors regarding options for financing their portion of “the local share contribution.”
There’s no confirmation yet on when this report will be available.
On Monday, Ontario Liberals urged the province to disclose full project budgets and take responsibility for all but the original $700 million designated as community funds.
Initially anticipated for completion in 2028, an advisor had previously informed city councillors earlier this year that delays likely push opening well into the 2030s. The site is located near where current Civic campus stands which opened its doors back in November 1924.
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