Hempfield OKs site plan for Allegheny Health Network 'micro-hospital'

The Hempfield Township supervisors approved the first stage of Allegheny Health Network's plan to build a small hospital Wednesday, drawing ire from officials and supporters of nearby Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital.

The crowded meeting featured public comments from AHN representatives and their allies who support the plan — and opposing comments from speakers affiliated with Excela Health.

AHN Executive Vice President David Goldberg said the project is responding to the needs of Westmoreland County residents.

“They have told us they want more options closer to home, and we're listening. That's why we're here tonight,” he said.

Critics said the project was rushed through the approval process, and they asked whether the supervisors' decision could be delayed until next month.

“We would just ask the board to make sure this competition is on a level playing field,” Excela Health Vice President David Gawaluck said. “Excela works hard for this community to provide that high-quality level of care.

“It just seems given the complexity of the project ... that maybe this project was a little bit rushed.”

The AHN Hempfield-Neighborhood Hospital was announced Dec. 11.

It is the first of four “micro-hospitals” planned to be built across the region in a partnership between AHN, Highmark and Emerus, a Texas-based developer that will manage the hospitals.

The proposed Hempfield hospital would have an emergency room and 10 beds for observation and short-term stays.

It would be located at the intersection of Agnew Road and Route 30 — about 2 miles from Excela Health Westmoreland Hospital.

After the announcement, Excela President and CEO Bob Rogalski called the expansion “predatory” and unnecessary.

Hempfield Supervisor John Silvis was the lone dissenting vote on Wednesday.

“Why do we have to rush into this?” he asked. “I think we should give it more study.”

His remarks prompted applause from the pro-Excela contingent.

It was the other side of the room's turn to applaud a few minutes later, when the plan passed 4-1.

The preliminary site plan is contingent on the hospital getting the required permits.

The approval only grants occupancy for about 79,000 square feet of the proposed 120,000-square-foot structure. The remaining 41,000 square feet would remain unoccupied as operations ramp up, according to AHN officials.

The hospital would need to come back to the board to occupy the rest.

By only submitting a site plan for the initial use, the hospital does not need to immediately build the full number of parking spaces that would be required for the whole building, according to Douglas Weimer, chairman of the Hempfield supervisors.

Weimer said AHN went through the normal process, and there was no reason to deny their site plan.

“It is not this board's responsibility to pick winners or losers in the business world or the health industry,” Weimer said.

Excela may continue to contest the project, according to Excela Senior Vice President and General Counsel Timothy Fedele.

“I think we are going to look at this project every step of the way,” he said.

The new hospital is slated to open in summer 2019.

Jacob Tierney is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-836-6646, jtierney@tribweb.com or via Twitter @Soolseem.