After delays, cost increases, new Surrey hospital breaks ground

The province has broken ground on a new, second hospital for the City of Surrey, but the project's cost has risen by more than $1 billion and its completion date has been pushed back by two years.

The province has broken ground on a new, second hospital for the City of Surrey, but the project's cost has risen by more than $1 billion and its completion date has been pushed back by two years.

B.C. Premier David Eby and Health Minister Adrian Dix spoke at the construction site in Cloverdale Tuesday morning, releasing updated details on the long-promised facility.

Last year, officials priced the project at roughly $1.72 billion. The timeline called for construction to begin in July of this year, with a completion date of April 2027. Early Tuesday morning, the date on the sign at the site was covered up with yellow tape.

The total cost of the project is now expected to be $2.88 billion, with work scheduled to be completed in 2029 and the facility opening to patients in 2030. 

Eby said there are "a number of reasons for the extended timeline," including the needs of the contractor building the project and "labour availability."

"The critical piece for us is to get this hospital open as soon as possible," he said. "The commitment is there from the contractors – both in the contract and personally – to meet those deadlines and those prices for taxpayers and for the people in Surrey, who deserve health care."

The project is said to include nearly 168 inpatient beds, 55 emergency treatment rooms and four procedure rooms.