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November 19, 2013

The Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre will consolidate inpatient, outpatient and outreach mental health and addiction services in a home-like environment designed for wellness and recovery.

Willow Chest Centre demolition

Please be advised that beginning on Monday, November 25, 2013 staff, patients and visitors of Vancouver General Hospital will start to notice the impacts of the Willow Chest Centre (WCC) Demolition Project in order to make way for the start of construction on the new Joseph & Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre (JRSFHC).

On November 25th hoarding will be erected at the ends of the Willow Chest Centre tunnel and at the 4 levels of the Research Pavilion, connected to WCC, to seal the building off in an effort to control the dust, noise and vibrations expected to be caused by the demolition work.

Also, a construction fence will be erected around the south side of the building, removing existing parking stalls, in order to allow for the demolition activities to safely proceed.

The initial work will consist of removing the existing hazardous material from the entire building. This work should take approximately two months.

Following the hazardous material abatement the actual demolition of the building will start in 2014. The entire site should be cleared by the end of summer, 2014.

To protect the staff on campus, an infection control plan has been developed to deal with issues in the existing building, as well as the surrounding buildings. This plan has been vetted and approved by VCH Infection Control and WorkSafeBC.

In addition to the infection control plan, a traffic management plan and a site-specific safety plan have been developed to further safeguard staff, patients and visitors on campus.

We are working to minimize your inconvenience and apologize in advance for any disruptions the demolition will cause.

For additional information or to pose questions please contact the following:

For more information contact: Sam Collins , portfolio manager, Joseph and Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre , Capital Projects, Facilities Management

  1. Samule Collins

    Hi Jas – Our editor is right. It’s easy to confuse Willow Chest Centre with Willow Pavilion – even our editor can get them confused! While it’s true that we fully renovated Willow Pavilion for tertiary mental health clients, you’re also correct in noting that we made some renovations to Willow Chest Centre for tertiary mental health. Funded by the Ministry of Health, these renovations made it possible for one tertiary mental health program serving 21 patients to transfer from Riverview. Willow Chest was chosen because at the time it was the only site that fit the bill in terms of location, budget and timeliness. It was also understood that Willow Chest was a temporary location because the building was nearing the end of its operational life. On May 1, 2013 the Willow Chest tertiary mental health program moved into Willow Pavilion, where clients and staff have better access to programs, services and resources on the first floor of that facility.

    Now, we’ve begun demolishing Willow Chest Centre because of the proximity to the core of VGH, adjacentcy to Willow Pavilion and all clinical, allied health and support services, will provide operational, safety and security benefits for the future clients, staff and physicians of the Joseph and Rosalie Segal Family Health Centre.

    December 16, 2013

  2. Tasha

    “On November 25, hoarding, infection control and other safety plans will be in place… ”

    I initially thought that these were residential units, and that Mental Health would be working with hoarders to move their belongings. In actual fact, BOARDING will be in place. Which makes the article less interesting, but more sensical.

    November 22, 2013

    • Editor

      Thanks for the comment Tasha. Yes that’s right. Hoarding is a term used in the construction industry that refers to any temporary fencing placed around the work site.

      November 22, 2013

  3. Jas

    Why is this building being demolished so soon after being renovated? Wasn’t $2 million just invested into this building a year or so ago? These are health care dollars, why are resources not being used appropriately?

    November 21, 2013