Hospital votes to move out of Princeton

Four or five sites under consideration for a new $250 million campus.

By: David Campbell
   In the culmination of more than two years of planning and public discussion, the board of trustees of Princeton HealthCare System voted Monday night to build a new state-of-the-art hospital campus outside of Princeton while remaining within 2 to 6 miles of the current Witherspoon Street site.
   The trustees voted 24-0, with four members absent, in favor of pursuing a new campus, which the trustees have determined would provide needed space for advanced medical services, easier patient access and room to expand in step with the region’s growing population. They concluded that a move over the long term will be more cost-effective and better serve the community than expanding and renovating the hospital’s landlocked campus in Princeton, PHCS said.
   PHCS President and CEO Barry Rabner said Monday night following the trustees’ decision that the new location is expected to be disclosed by the end of June along with a detailed business plan for the move, which will then be considered by the trustees for a vote.
   About four or five sites are currently being considered, and discussions with landowners as well as developers interested in occupying or building on the existing 11.76 acres of hospital property off Witherspoon Street once it is vacated have been ongoing, Mr. Rabner said.
   Provided the business plan is approved, a certificate of need would be sought from the state Department of Health and Senior Services, which Mr. Rabner noted PHCS has every reason to believe will be granted. "We have a very sound case," he said.
   Review and approval by the state health commissioner, with input from the State Health Planning Board, could take from eight to 12 months to obtain, the PHCS president continued.
   If all goes well, a new hospital campus of at least 50 acres could open within approximately five years, he indicated Monday evening.
   The cost for building a new campus has been estimated to be as much as $250 million.
   Hospital officials said Monday night’s decision was not influenced by a recent announcement by Capital Health System of plans to build a new 300-bed hospital in Lawrence Township, a move that could be viewed as a competitive foray into the suburban health-care market served by PHCS.
   According to Mr. Rabner, "Our decision was based on where our patients live and what their needs are, not what Capital Health does."
   PHCS Board of Trustees Chairman John S. Chamberlin said, "Our purpose is to serve our current patients — that’s what we’re building a new hospital for."
   The trustees’ decision Monday night begins a new chapter in planning the future of the University Medical Center at Princeton, and closes one that began almost three years ago in April 2002.
   That was when Mr. Rabner first joined the health-care system as its new president and CEO. The incoming hospital president ranked public outreach and communication as a top priority, something previous hospital administrations had been criticized for failing to do.
   In the fall of 2002, PHCS embarked on a long-range strategic plan to identify system-wide needs and objectives over the next several years. That process engaged scores of officials and residents from area communities, and resulted in a plan that was approved by the trustees and released to local leaders last summer.
   That report concluded that the hospital must grow and upgrade in order to remain a competitive, state-of-the-art facility in the future, but it left open the question of whether that growth should occur at the current Witherspoon Street site or at a larger, more accessible location in the Princeton region. However, the report suggested that relocation could positively affect the health-care system "for decades to come," provided it’s done in a way that’s financially feasible.
   Meanwhile, almost a year ago, the Princeton Health Care Task Force, established by the governing bodies of Princeton Township and Princeton Borough, convened with the objective of weighing alternative uses for the Witherspoon Street campus and possibly recommend Master Plan and zoning changes depending on what PHCS ultimately decided.
   The task force has held four public forums so far, with another public meeting expected sometime next month in which a draft report containing the task force’s recommendations will be presented for community input. Task force members gave an update on their progress to the trustees Monday night, Mr. Rabner said.
   At the most recent of the task force’s forums, held in December, the advisory group posed various alternative uses for the hospital site, including residential or senior housing, Princeton University housing or mixed-used development.
   PHCS plans to work with municipal officials to identify potential uses for the Witherspoon Street campus once the hospital moves. Funds raised from the sale of the property will be reinvested in the new hospital campus, PHCS said.