Ontario Construction News staff writer
The Ontario government this week announced $10 million for Southlake Health’s new acute care hospital in East Gwillimbury and redevelopment of Southlake Regional Health Centre in Newmarket.
“Next year, we will start construction on the York University School of Medicine in Vaughan and open a new long-term care home in King, and this year, we are formally giving the green light to build a new acute care hospital for the benefit of our families, seniors and future generations,” said King-Vaughan MPP Stephen Lecce.
The new funding will support early planning for a new acute care hospital in East Gwillimbury, near the site of the future Bradford Bypass. It will include:
- expanded acute and post-acute care, including medicine, surgery, orthopedics, rehabilitation, maternal and child health, and pediatric mental health
- increased inpatient capacity to meet the community’s future needs and allow more people to connect to care sooner
- new emergency department with diagnostic imaging and upgraded infection prevention and control measures
The current Newmarket hospital will be renovated and modernized, with more inpatient beds and expanded emergency capacity.
“Today marks a defining moment for Southlake Health as we take a major step forward in transforming care across northern York Region and southern Simcoe County,” said Paul Woods, President and CEO of Southlake Health. “The Government of Ontario’s investment and endorsement of our vision to build a Distributed Health Network will create a more integrated, sustainable local health-care system for generations to come.”
As a next step, the Ministry of Health is working with Southlake Health to complete early planning for the new hospital, including determining bed numbers and square footage. Once further planning is completed and the project is tendered and awarded, a construction schedule will be confirmed.
Over the next 10 years, Ontario is investing approximately $64 billion in major health infrastructure. In 2025-26, Southlake Health received over $2.9 million through the Health Infrastructure Renewal Fund to support the critical infrastructure needs of its hospital.\–
“The redevelopment of Southlake Health’s Davis Drive campus and the exciting plans for the construction of a new hospital represent a tremendous leap forward in enhancing health-care services for our community, promising a positive and enduring impact for generations to come,” said Iain Lovatt, Mayor of Whitchurch-Stouffville.
