Carson-Tahoe Hospital showing the way

Like a warm day in January, Carson-Tahoe Hospital has dispelled some of the gloom and doom overshadowing the local economy and provided a vision of health and prosperity for the future.

The hospital, which was converted from public ownership to a private nonprofit corporation as a means of laying the groundwork for capital expansion, is sailing ahead with plans for a new regional medical center on 55 acres in North Carson City.

The investment of $132 million for a building three times the size of the existing hospital dwarfs any other development being considered in Carson City. It makes big-box retail stores seem like shoeboxes in comparison.

"This project is a diamond in terms of economic development," Walt Sullivan, planning and community development director, told hospital officials as their plans were confirmed last week by planning commissioners.

The benefits to the community are equally vast. Beyond the economic significance of a regional medical center and related services, it will provide Carson City residents with both convenience and quality in health care.

It's also an example of just how far down the road Carson City's leaders must look to shape the kind of community its residents desire.

The medical center is scheduled for completion in 2005 -- approximately seven years after Carson-Tahoe officials began considering a series of options on how best to strengthen the hospital's place in a complex and competitive marketplace.

As financial reports showed this week, Carson-Tahoe Hospital remained profitable in 2002. Its net of $6 million on $90 million in total operating revenue speaks well for the long-term viability of the hospital.

It's also important to note the boost given two weeks ago to the hospital's second major project -- a cancer-treatment center -- toward its $12 million goal. The Carson-Tahoe Hospital Foundation already has $2 million, thanks to a $1.25 million donation by George Hoffmeier-Litts of Carson City.

Hospitals and treatment centers are necessities of life. Like cloudy days that bring snowstorms in January, we embrace them because they provide for us when we need them most.