Residents in the Tweed region are a step closer to having a new state-of-the-art hospital after the NSW Government approved concept plans for the facility.
Member for Tweed Geoff Provest said the hospital will cater to a population that is expected to grow by 24 percent over the next two decades.
“It’s so important that health services in the Tweed region can accommodate future growth and the demands of an ageing population,” he said.
Mr Provest said the new hospital will also provide a huge boost to the local economy.
“The Tweed Valley Hospital project is forecast to have up to 650 workers on-site at the peak of construction. In addition, there will be a significant increase in operational jobs which will be determined through detailed work force planning” he said.
Planning and Public Spaces Minister Rob Stokes said the project has gone through a rigorous assessment process and feedback from locals was taken into account.
“The project has been approved subject to conditions that address the issues that the community has raised, including impacts to state significant farmland,” Mr Stokes said.
Mr Stokes said the conditions of consent include requirements that must be met in the Stage 1 construction works and the Stage 2 development application for the hospital design, such as:
• Reduction measures to manage impacts of noise, dust and air quality on the surrounding residents and visitors to the area
• On-going consultation with the community and targeted stakeholders likely to be impacted by the development
• Reuse of the topsoil on site for landscaping or on other suitable sites for agricultural purposes (Stage 2 application)
• Identify opportunities for incorporating edible plant varieties within the landscape design for the future hospital
A separate Stage 2 application for the detailed design, construction and operation of the future hospital will be assessed in the future.
The Stage 2 application will be informed by the outcome of our assessment of Concept and Stage 1, including conditions of consent.