THE general manager of the Bathurst Private Hospital has expressed his disappointment at the loss of the Bathurst Integrated Medical Centre (BIMC) development.
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The private hospital was counting on that development going ahead, intending to move from its location in Gormans Hill to the new medical facility that was proposed for the former Clancy Motors site in Howick Street.
Bathurst council and the development group were unable to reach a funding agreement for the multi-storey car park that was to be attached to the facility, and as a result, the development application (DA) will not be lodged "in the foreseeable future".
Bathurst Private Hospital general manager, Geoff Oakley, said he was disappointed by the decision.
He feels the parties involved had lost sight of the concept of BIMC and what it would do for Bathurst, instead getting bogged down in the car parking issue.
"Having a one-stop medical centre had huge benefits for the patients and the concept had the community at the forefront," he said.
"... It was more about developing a better healthcare service for Bathurst. I'm not saying that's gone, because we still deliver excellent care out here and will continue to, but having a one-stop shop where people don't have to move around and can do everything in one place is definitely convenient, particularly to the elderly."
Garry Zauner, of Zauner Construction, the project manager for the development, said it is "physically not possible" to lodge a DA without the car parking arrangements finalised.
As for the council, its decision to reject a car parking request was made unanimously due to increased financial cost implications to ratepayers, along with inadequate parking spaces for the Bathurst community.
Mayor Jess Jennings also said the lack of parking would have created "a much bigger problem than it would have been solving".
Regardless of the reasons behind the decisions the council and the development group have made, there's no question in Mr Oakley's mind that Bathurst is losing the opportunities the BIMC would have brought.
This includes reinvigorating the central business district (CBD), which he said is needed at the moment.
It will also make it harder for Bathurst to attract more surgeons and specialists to the city.
"New buildings attract new surgeons and new GPs, that just goes with the territory; you see it everywhere you go," Mr Oakley said.
"Orange and Dubbo have got new builds and they've attracted a lot of new surgeons, and we just can't get them to Bathurst."
It's also a sad situation for the staff at Bathurst Private Hospital, who were excited about the prospect of working from a new, state-of-the-art facility close to shops, restaurants and other businesses.
"We do have a number of staff here and the staff were really looking forward to being able to walk across the road and just grab lunch, which would boost the local economy," Mr Oakley said.
"There's nothing around us here. If we had have been in the centre [of the city], it would have definitely increased the staff morale."
Mr Oakley said the staff have accepted the news that the BIMC is not going ahead at this time and they are committed to "make the best of what we've got here".
However, Mr Oakley hopes the council continues to look for potential private health investment into Bathurst that could result in a similar proposal to what the BIMC was set to offer.
Rachel Chamberlain
I have been a journalist at the Western Advocate since 2014.
I have been a journalist at the Western Advocate since 2014.
