Saba Cares hosted a community update meeting on Friday, September 22 nd to inform residents about its building project, the construction and expansion of a care institution, including a new nursing home. Demolition work of the Saba Cares administration and physical therapy buildings on Oranje Straat starts October 2 nd .
As this major, three-year project kicks off, there will be some adjustments and inconveniences for the public, in particular people living nearby. Saba Cares considers it important to keep the public informed and as such, a community update meeting was held last Friday.
Oranje Straat will be permanently closed off per October 1 st . This not only counts for vehicular traffic but
also for pedestrians. The entire area will be cleared in full preparation for the construction. The demolishing of the existing buildings starts on October 2 nd and will take about six weeks. Paris Hill Road on the side of the clinic will be converted into a two-way street. To secure free access of the ambulance, Paris Hill Road from the hospital to the corner of Fort Bay Road has to remain clear of obstructions, so parking on the road won’t be allowed anymore.
Two phases
Construction will take place in two phases. Stanley Peterson of QBR Joint Venture B.V., a collaboration between a Saban and a Canadian contractor, assured that full access to the hospital will be maintained and that the contractors involved in this project will do their utmost to reduce the inconveniences, the dust and noise pollution as much as possible, also because of the proximity to the hospital and The Home. “We will accommodate the community wherever we can,” said Peterson. Construction work will take place from Monday through Saturday, generally from 7.00am to 5.00pm.
Zoubeir El Atmani, General Manager of the Infrastructural and the Spatial Development Bureau of the Public Entity Saba, explained the parking logistics that are involved. Parking around the hospital will become extremely limited. Therefore, some measures will be taken.
Temporary parking lot
One of the measures is the preparation of a temporary parking location at The Range. Government workers will park there, but also trucks that are currently parked at the Princess Juliana’s Sports Field will be relocated to the temporary parking lot at The Range. This will free up some space so Saba Cares employees and patients can park next to the sports field, at a location that is close to the hospital. El Atmani assured residents at Friday’s meeting that safety will be continuously monitored and adjustments will be made to the local traffic situation where needed.
A lot of planning and preparing went into this project, explained Judith Meijer, Board of Directors of Saba Cares. She announced that Saba Cares has made a special telephone number, 416 5546, available where people can address their questions and concerns. Meijer said that the public will be kept informed about the project through meetings, newsletters and the Saba Cares Facebook page.
Once completed, the new nursing home will consist of 7 to 9 single apartments housing three living groups, accommodating a total of 24 residents. An additional 17 apartments will be built as well as a restaurant, an activity center and a quiet center. The Ministry of Public Health, Wellbeing and Sport (VWS) in the Netherlands is responsible for the financing of the buildings and furnishings.