FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions

Tri-City Hospital Foundation is an IRS-approved 501(c)(3) organization. Gifts made through the Foundation are tax deductible as permitted by law.

Q1. Is Tri-City building a new hospital?

• A concept for an expanded hospital is part of Tri-City’s exciting vision for the future and needed to meet the community’s growing need for the highest quality healthcare.

Q2. When will the new hospital building construction start?

• The hospital expansion is designed in 4 stages. The first stage including a new Medical Office Building and parking structure is already underway with a groundbreaking gin late 2011. The remaining phases of the hospital expansion are in the concept stages and various studies must be completed before plans are formalized. As you can imagine, this project will require several years to plan before completion.

Q3. Will tax payers be funding the building of the new hospital?

• The hospital expansion is proposed to be funded by a combination of hospital profits, grants and loans along with philanthropic support from visionary leaders in our community. The goal of Tri-City’s leadership is to finance construction without tax dollars.

Q4. Will the current facility be closed?

• The fourth phase of the expansion concept would repurpose existing structures on the campus and adding new lines of services critical to the community. When completed, the expansion will roughly double the size of the campus (1million square feet).  

Q5. I see a lot of construction happening around the hospital. Is construction underway for the new facility?

• Current construction at Tri-City includes a new Medical Office Building and much-needed parking structure which are early steps to improve Tri-City’s facilities and prepare for the future.

Q6. How do we know that this plan will be approved at the district board level?

• The Tri-City Medical Center leadership presented the new campus plan to the health district board which gave its initial approval to advance the concept. The district board approved the community study of the proposal and has been engaged at every step.

Q7. Why is this expansion even necessary?

• Tri-City hospital just celebrated its 50th anniversary and, like other hospitals in the region, is due to be modernized in order to meet the community’s growing need for quality health care. The expansion concept will double the size of the hospital campus, help attract world-class physicians and nurses, allowing Tri-City to expand its services and enhance the economic vitality and health of the region.

Q7. Palomar Pomerado Health thought it could build a hospital for $811 million but now the cost is over $1 billion. How can you be sure you won’t need to come to taxpayers to bail you out?

• First of all, that’s why we’re spending a full year carefully studying the plan: to ensure we have a solid understanding of the cost structure. Second, there are many cost savings since this is an expansion rather than a rebuild, we currently own the land and have designed the master plan to optimize space allocation between business and acute care structures. And third, when we complete the studies and the plan is approved, it is our intent that no taxpayer funds or bond measure is required, but we will not know for certain until the process is further along.