Project rendering
POUGHKEEPSIE – Officials of Vassar Brothers Medical Center hope to break ground for their nearly 700,000 square foot, seven-story building this summer or fall once the Poughkeepsie City Planning Board grants its approval.
The board this week heard its first formal presentation for the largest construction project ever in the city at $466 million.
Parent company HealthQuest spokesman Tim Massie said they have been discussing their plans with city officials for a year.
“We are meeting on an ongoing basis with a number of city officials. We met with the city fire chief for a couple of hours the other day to go over any concerns he may have, Massie said. “We went over this with the city administrator who is also the police chief and we have gone over this with members of the common council, waterfront advisory board, Scenic Hudson; you name the organization, we have been meeting with these folks all the way for the last year.”
While the new building will be seven stories, only five will be visible as the lower two will be for underground parking.
The new facility will include 294 private patient rooms, a new emergency department, loading dock, central plant, interventional suite, conference center, café, and new inpatient lobby.
The plans also include renovation to just under 14,000 square feet in the existing hospital building.
The planning board has declared itself lead agency in the environmental review of the project.
