Hospital closer to renovations

University Hospital officials played host to a public hearing Wednesday and cleared another hurdle on the way to an $84.5 million renovation.

The public hearing by the Richmond County Hospital Authority is required before it can continue plans to extend the lease of the hospital to one of University's operating companies, University Health Services. The authority leased the hospital to the company for 40 years in 1985 and it voted in November to seek to extend it 20 years. The lease needed to be extended to accommodate University's desire to seek a 30-year bond issue to fund the renovation, said Chief Financial Officer Robert Taylor.

"This is a big first step," he said. Although no amount has been set, the bond issue will likely be between $50 million and $70 million, Mr. Taylor said. University will present year-end figures to the board overseeing Health Services today, but will not approach bond rating companies until after an audit is done, probably by April. University would then close on the bond issue in the summer, Mr. Taylor said.

University had $50 million bond issues in 1999 and in 2003 to pay for other renovations and about $80 million to $90 million of that debt still remains, he said.

The hearing Wednesday, which did not attract any public comment, was the last official meeting in the administration building conference room where Health Services has held its board meetings. That building will be among the first torn down to make way for a Cardiovascular Center at the rear of the hospital.

Officials are already packing up offices to accommodate the major renovation, said J. Larry Read, CEO of University Health Care System.

"We're already under way with the moves we have to make," he said.

Reach Tom Corwin at (706) 823-3213 or tom.corwin@augustachronicle.com.