Build hospital on site

September 25, 2006

Dear Sir,

I went to the meeting at The Bermuda College on Saturday morning to listen to the panel and the comments and questions from the gallery. By the time I had a clearer impression of just why the Botanical Gardens was being targeted for the site of the new hospital I had quite a few comments (and even more questions) but the meeting was soon over and I never had a chance to have the microphone in my hands. I was told to write my question on a card and it would be answered, but life isn?t that easy, and I really wanted everyone to know what I had to say, and to hear answers to my questions. My opening statement is simple enough ? we need a new hospital, we need it now and we don?t need to lose part of the Botanical Gardens. Don?t take the easy way out. Don?t take the cheaper route. Find a solution.

They say the loss of Botanical ?Gardens? will be ?Less than 30 percent? but what about the space needed to re-build those structures razed to make room for the new hospital. They say the site of the existing hospital when demolished will be turned into gardens but it doesn?t make sense to have a hospital site cutting off one section of Gardens from the other and as was pointed out in the meeting ? it is zoned such that it could be available for future development depending on Government/hospital needs.

The child-like sketch of the new building in the Gardens doesn?t really reveal much in the way of detail. We were told the main entrance would be on Berry Hill Road, what about proximity to public transportation ? there?s no bus route on Berry Hill Road (unless there are plans for major road widening). They want less private car use, more bus use, so keep it on-site and it?s on a great bus route which already works.

Sometimes one can be confused with too many choices, instead of figuring out all the reasons why one can?t have a hospital here, there and everywhere around the Island ? stick to one exercise ... how to build the new hospital in the same area. It is even misleading to use the term ?on-site? as really most of the new hospital in my vision would be along Point Finger Road. There was an old plan for on-site development which was shown on Saturday morning (but was not shown on Thursday or Friday evening). I wanted to know how old this plan was, and it didn?t seem to include the ?Springfield? property which was purchased by Government a few years ago.

One of the main reasons for not building on-site was the need for accommodation for nurses and the 103 extended care patients. By 2012 there will be a higher number, and more nurses, so let?s start with what to do with them. There are plans for building new facilities for nurses on the north side of Berry Hill (where water catch is). Why not have the lower floors for the extended care patients, and the upper floors for residence. Due to the steep hill this building will be an architectural challenge but it can be set on terraced foundations and there are elevators! Once the new hospital building is complete, you could move the extended care patients into to their new quarters and make the ground floor satellite offices or more nurses accommodation. Eventually connect this building to the new hospital building by way of a sky walk (across to building where parking is at moment) Once this new building for accommodation/extended care is done on Berry Hill ? demolish a huge ?L? shape from current parking on south side of Berry Hill, nurses quarters, prep ?Springfield? site on corner, parking area along Point Finger Road, demolish old KEMH, prep site on south side of entrance, and you have one very long building site with ? tons of space for underground parking ? and in order to accommodate many wards and departments you will have to go UP a few more floors than anticipated.

It could be terraced back (as has been done with the new A.S. Cooper Building) so we don?t have a massive block staring at us. It could also be built with atriums between smaller buildings (departments would be moved in when ready), fed by one entrance (for security reasons). On Point Finger Road there will be a wide enough strip of land between road and building to allow for a lovely garden walkway from Berry Hill to the entrance to Botanical Gardens and to bus stops. Once this new building on Point Finger Road is occupied, then you can demolish part of existing hospital and build some new extension, and then when that is occupied, demolish what is left of the existing hospital... I believe doing it in stages can work.

I read all the weaknesses of development ?on site? and after each one I thought just ?deal with it?.

Measurable risks ? work at reducing risks

Acquisition of Botanical Gardens ? only ?temporary? during construction (staging/parking)

Hospital disruption ? get a good management team to ease disruption

Noise control ? there has been noise for years during construction projects

Airborne Particles ? more of a danger for all construction workers than hospital workers

More housekeeping needed to change air filters etc. - not a problem

Site accessibility ? again, not a problem if planned well

Vibrations and need to recalibrate machinery ? do what they do in earthquake zones

Time & scheduling constraints ? again, need good timeline management

Ground condition ? cleanup of any contamination would have to be done anyway, whether for new building or turning into public garden space. Work around this time delay.

Unknown underground services locations ? Would someone please explain to me why this is a problem? What do they do in big cities where this must be a problem all the time with new buildings on very old foundations.

Community ? I?m sure all the residents in the area agree with an immediate start to on-site development for a new hospital. Many buildings are already occupied on Point Finger Road/Berry Hill by medical professionals (or owners are hoping to sell!) Relocate underground utilities/build temporary buildings for services ? again, work with it.

Quantitative Risk: Increasing cost ? we are going to get them anyway

Financial exposures re contamination, insurability, financial viability these are unknown factors

I?m not an expert to comment on Need for three to five acres to facilitate construction ? this sounds a lot, but would be only temporary ? and would be done whether on-site or in the Gardens Significant parking issue during construction ? ?temporary? parking at Botanical Gardens with shuttle.

And would someone please explain to me ? how can (the current) Government have a ceiling of $500M, when recently every large construction project has, shall we say, not gone very well. Given all the above, my comments and questions from Saturday morning, surely ?on-site? development of a much needed new hospital can be done and hopefully completed by 2012.

FOR OUR CHILDREN, AND OUR CHILDREN?S CHILDREN

Don?t be unfair to writer

September 22, 2006

Dear Sir,

I think the backlash aimed at the person who posted the anti-foreigner flyers on people?s cars is unfair. I recently had the privilege to actually read what had been posted on this flyer and have to wholeheartedly agree.

Not only do foreigners take all the good parking spots, but they are solely responsible for the long lines at the bank on a late Friday afternoon. Have you noticed how busy the grocery stores are on, say, a Wednesday afternoon?

Or have you ever had to wait in line at the post office to pick up a parcel? Why do you suppose that is? All of our problems, including these are because of the stupid foreigners! For example, the other day I went to see the Doctor. I was a few minutes late for my appointment because all the stupid foreigners had taken up the good parking spots, as usual! When I finally get there, I had to wait nearly half an hour before he would see me! Apparently all the foreigners are taking up the good doctor?s appointments too!

I finally see him, and he tells me there is a foreign object in my eye which was causing the irritation! He clearly said ?foreign? and not Bermudian, so he seems to be in agreement with me regarding the problems these foreigners cause! I then went to fill my prescription and I had to wait in line for almost five minutes ? again because of all the stupid foreigners! I think we should make them all live in walled-in communities, out of sight from the rest of us. We should make them wear badges which clearly identify them as foreigners, in order to separate and humiliate them. (Although, apparently all foreigners can easily be identified merely by the colour of their skin, according to my friend who wrote the flyer. There are no white Bermudians or black foreigners)

As time goes on, we will make them carry ID cards which we will demand to see for no apparent reason. We should jail or beat anyone caught without one. In fact, it?s a shame they did away with the railway system because I had a great idea for a ?final solution? to deal with these stupid foreigners; we really could have used some trains to pack them into.

Yup, it?s true. Every social ill in Bermuda and every small personal inconvenience I have ever suffered is due to the foreigners. If they all left, we would be living in a perfect society very shortly thereafter. We don?t need or want them here for any reason whatsoever.

I would like to make a list of all the reasons to hate foreigners and publish it. I will put that book right on my shelf next to a favourite of mine, Mein Kampf. My first reason for hating foreigners is that their very name, ?foreigners? is hard to spell; almost as hard to spell as that big exempt company, EXCELL. Or is it XL....? Who cares ? I know my friend who wrote the flyer doesn?t. All I know is that God planted me here after the Garden of Eden and anybody else needs to go back where they?re from.

A DISGUSTED (AND SARCASTIC) BERMUDIAN

The same old issues

September 21, 2006

Dear Sir,

Re: Quo Fata Ferunt. Bravo for your website, and I mean it, really well done. I check several news sites every day, but when I travel, ?up dee country?, I buy the paper. I still want to save the trees, and the planet eventually. September 20 and 22, I bought what I believe will become collectors items, and found good humour about Bermuda.

Club Med may be demolished by KJA, an Armenian who has a vision for us in St George?s, and he wants the people of the East end to feel part of the project! Wow, great, really, truly, however we do want to see the conceptual drawings of the vision, and we don?t want anything that is going to ruin our environment, and something that will create jobs for Bermudians on a long-term basis.

But, be careful with apologies from Avedikian, because he is trying to do something really good for Bermuda, it sounds so suspicious! Coming from an alien, I?ve been there. Finally, in this ?country?, the Minister of Home Affairs feels appalled and embarrassed about the racist flyers. Bravo, racism is stupid, and it is a luxury that Bermuda cannot afford, but whichever multiracial government we have, it should seriously address the issue. Oh, by the way, no independence will change the problem, it?s the 21st century, remember! Also, thank you, Government of Bermuda for putting the enlargement of the cut entrance to St George?s harbour on the back burner, and eventually turn the gas off the idea about letting monstrosities cover our skyline. Keep them at anchor, bring the tourists in with War Baby Fox. Make more money with special services.

In conclusion, I believe that Avedikian?s vision could be good for business down in St George?s, but we have to see the plans. I feel like (Sen. David) Burch, something has got to happen faster to speed up the process, and solve the housing issue. There are too many empty or derelict properties, that will remain so because someone is afraid not to make the right decision, or not to make enough from the decision. Please don?t mess with the parks, build the new hospital in this Island near Bermuda called St. David?s. In case we loose the Causeway in the next ?Furricane?. What is it going to be? For the next generations of Governments... The same old issues. Quo Fata Ferunt.

THIERRY CABOT

St George?s

Where were the Police?

September 25, 2006

Dear Sir,

I was awoken in the early hours of Saturday morning to the sounds of motorcycles racing up and down South Road at the junction of Collectors Hill. The balcony of my house on Cloverdale Road overlooks the main road where I watched a large group of bikers race each other up and down while others stood spectating.

I phoned the police and reported them but no one turned up to shut them down as they carried on zipping up and down for at least another hour before the peace and quiet resumed. Are the police too busy where they cannot respond to a complaint from a hard working law abiding citizen? What would have happened if a serious or fatal accident had occurred? You would be the first to ?appeal for witnesses?. Maybe I should be writing to Commissioner George Jackson instead to see why the Police Service seems to be providing a lack thereof.

TAX PAYER

Cloverdale Road, Smiths Parish

Dismayed at project

September 21, 2006

Dear Sir

I had the opportunity to attend the first meeting of the BHB presentation, on building on the Botanical Gardens, I came with the expectation of receiving information, about that decision. I must say though, I came away from that meeting a little dismayed. It was not so much the information that was presented by the panel of, board members, architects and consultants, but it was the behaviour of some of the audience. I was only one of a handful of black people there, so to watch the reaction of some of the people was quite interesting, Mr. editor, do you remember the TV show called ?Men acting badly?? Well this spectacle could have been called ?White people acting extremely badly?.

I mean I can understand folk being emotional about the proposal of building in the gardens, but some of these people were down right rude, obnoxious, and disrespectful to the panel. The area that I sat in, several of the people had some pretty nasty things to say about the government. One man even said he didn?t think that the objections, to the plans of government would make any difference, since he was of a different ?hue? as the cabinet members.

Well I certainly didn?t say anything, in my opinion, many came into the meeting filled with hostility, and a closed mind. The auditorium was packed, standing room only, so I had to stretch my neck to see who was down further in front of me, and there they were, the loyal opposition, Mrs. (Louise) Jackson, Mrs. (Pat) Gordon-Pamplin and Mr. (John) Barritt. All of a sudden Mrs. Jackson stood up to ask a question, but before she got her answer from the panel, she yelled out ?Who all are against building in the Botanical Gardens?? and the crowd went wild, the applause, the screams, if you didn?t know where you were, you would thought that someone had hit the lottery. That?s when I truly realised, who the loyal opposition really represent.

Oh! I forgot to mention, The Honourable Opposition Leader Mr. Wayne Furbert, was there also, however he didn?t say anything, he just had a strange look on his face. Sir, I say all of this to say, that whole situation, helped me in many ways, I still haven?t decided if I?m for or against building in the gardens, but I have decided who I?m going to vote for. Thank you Mrs. Jackson

SHIRLEY RICHARDSON

Devonshire