The long-delayed NorthSide Redevelopment project in St. Louis took a step forward Monday.
The Missouri Department of Health's Facilities Review Committee granted a certificate of need for a three-bed urgent care hospital that's part of developer Paul McKee's master plan for the overall project. No one spoke in opposition to granting McKee a certificate of need during the committee's meeting, and the vote in favor was 7-0.
The facility is to be built at 25th Street and Maiden Lane.
"The three most-needed things on the north side are food, 24-7 health care and jobs," McKee said, "and this is the beginning of helping to fulfill one of those needs so that we can offset some of these incredibly poor health-care statistics from the north side of the city of St. Louis."
McKee also said he hopes to break ground on the health-care facility by late spring next year.
"Now we have to go through the whole finish-design (phase) and submit that to the state for approval, and to the city, and then we're on our way," McKee said.
The future Northside Urgent Care Hospital has a current estimated price tag of $6.8 million. That project, along with other NorthSide Regeneration projects, doesn't include streets, sidewalks, or other infrastructure, which McKee maintains is the city's responsibility.
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