The city of Santa Clarita, faced with the pressures of a burgeoning population, is grappling with the need to expand its only hospital despite residents’ concerns that a towering medical complex could ruin their suburban enclave reports the Los Angeles Times.

 

The region surrounding Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, which opened in 1975, has grown from a far-flung northern outpost of Los Angeles County to a sprawling suburb, with about 180,000 residents in the city of Santa Clarita alone. But Henry Mayo, a nonprofit facility equipped with a trauma center, remains the only local hospital.

 

Plans for the hospital expansion include four multilevel parking structures with two helipads, three medical office buildings and a five-story inpatient tower that could accommodate 120 new beds. Ultimately, the hospital could provide 370 beds.

 

“You have something that has a significant impact on all of us, that’s healthcare; and this is the only local hospital” said Carl Goldman, a 17-year area resident and owner of KHTS-AM (1220). “There’s a huge stake in this for everyone.”

 

Still, the expansion plan has riled many area residents who say they never bargained for so much construction and change in their already congested neighborhood of single-family homes. Talks are continuing among Henry Mayo officials, city staff and residents, and a decision may not come for months.

 

“We need to figure out how to get what the hospital needs in order to expand,” while making sure the size of the project is appropriate for the area, said Santa Clarita Mayor Marsha McLean.

 

Read it here: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-henrymayo16jul16,1,2103063.story?coll=la-headlines-california