PENETANGUISHENE, ON - Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene (MHCP) and Infrastructure Ontario today announced that Integrated Team Solutions (ITS) has signed a contract with the hospital to design, build, finance and maintain a new, state-of-the-art forensic mental health facility. 

Built on the hospital's existing site, the new hospital will replace the 160-bed Oak Ridge Facility and the 20-bed Brebeuf Facility, offering a larger, more modern space for treatment and care of people with mental health disorders who have been involved with the criminal justice system. Once complete, the new facility will consolidate MHCP into a more efficient, integrated complex.

Today's announcement signifies that all contractual steps have been completed and the project can move forward. Construction of the new building is expected to begin in early 2011 and will be completed in November 2013.

The project will create hundreds of construction jobs through the employment of local trades and construction related suppliers. At the height of construction, as many as 300 workers are expected to be on site daily. Labour and materials for the project will be drawn largely from the Midland-Barrie-Simcoe areas and the surrounding communities.

The ITS consortium represents a joint venture between EllisDon Corporation and Fengate Capital Management Ltd., with EllisDon also providing construction services. The facility was designed by Cannon Design and Honeywell Limited will provide facilities management. National Bank Financial Inc. acted as the financial advisor to ITS.

MHCP has signed a contract with ITS for $474.1 million, in current (2011) dollars. When adjusting for the anticipated inflation over the 30-year contract term, the contract value is $634.1 million.

MHCP'sredevelopment project will be delivered using an Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) model.

MHCP aims to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold certification for the design and construction of the new facility. LEED® standards focus on healthy indoor environments, reduced greenhouse gas emissions and efficient use of energy, water and other resources. 

Infrastructure Ontario and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care are working with Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene to develop the new hospital, which will remain publicly owned, publicly controlled and publicly accountable.  

Infrastructure Ontario is a Crown corporation dedicated to delivering some of the province's larger and more complex infrastructure renewal projects - ensuring they are built on time and on budget; as well, it is dedicated to providing the public sector and not-for-profit organizations with long-term financing to renew their infrastructure. 

Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene is a 312-bed psychiatric hospital located on Georgian Bay in the Town of Penetanguishene, approximately 150 km northwest of Toronto. MHCP provides an extensive range of both acute and longer-term psychiatric inpatient and outpatient services to all of Simcoe County, part of Dufferin County and the southern portion of Muskoka/Parry Sound. In addition, MHCP provides the province's only maximum secure forensic hospital for clients served by both the mental health and justice systems.  The hospital is recognized for the provision of exceptional care to those most needing mental health services and for its contributions to the understanding of mental illness. 

Visit www.infrastructureontario.ca or www.mhcp.on.ca for more information. 

Quotes: 

Honourable Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Infrastructure 
“This project is part of the largest reinvestment in health care facilities in Ontario in more than a generation. By investing in our health care infrastructure, we are stimulating the economy, creating jobs and building stronger and healthier communities.”  

Aileen Carroll, MPP for Barrie  
“This project is important not only for the many health care benefits it will provide, but also for the construction jobs it will create and the stimulus it will generate in the region and surrounding communities.”

John McCullough, Board Chair of Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene 
“With our partnership with ITS formalized, we look forward to the important work of building a state-of-the-art facility that will have enormous benefits on the people we serve and will help support a new era in mental health care. This project is also wonderful news for our community as it will have a tremendous economic spin-off, including construction and trades job creation.”  

Carol Lambie, President and CEO of Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene 
“Today is a momentous day for our hospital. We wish to thank the government and our community for their commitment to our vision, and we look forward to a long and productive partnership with Integrated Team Solutions.”

Contacts: 

Laurene Hilderley-Sibley 
Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene 
705-549-3181 ext 2214

Lyndsie York 
Infrastructure Ontario 
416-326-9368 
Disponible en français