New HealthSouth rehab facility gains final approval
A 34-room inpatient rehabilitation facility off of I-65 in Pelham has received final approval.
HealthSouth announced the approval on Monday, July 11 in a press release and at the Shelby County Commission meeting. Work on the project began in 2009, and Healthsouth filed a certificate of need (CON) and went through an appeals process and to the Supreme Court in the last six years.
“Recently, we got the CON for that project, and we’ll begin to build the hospital sometime next year,” said HealthSouth Regional Vice President Terry Brown. “We have to go to the state now to submit our plans, and we will start building that hospital either this year or sometime in the first quarter next year.”
The hospital will have 34 all-private rooms, an on-site therapy gym and rehabilitation technologies. It will take about a year to build, Brown said, and will bring about a $25 million investment and 85 full-time jobs to the community.
“When I say full-time jobs, many of our positions go by full-on, part-time persons, so the actual number of people employed will be larger than that,” Brown said.
The hospital will be located off of I-65 at exit 242, across from the County Services Building. Brown said HealthSouth has already acquired the property for the hospital.
“I want to thank everyone for all of their help in getting this process done,” Brown said. “It’s been a long and arduous process, but I think this is going to be a great benefit to the citizens of this county.”
Linda Wilder, Regional President of HealthSouth, said in a press release that they are excited to provide services closer to home for Shelby County residents.
“Currently, Shelby County residents have limited access to an inpatient rehabilitation hospital, which requires patients and their families to travel to Jefferson County for treatment,” Wilder said. “This new hospital will ensure that residents have appropriate and reasonable access to the latest rehabilitative treatment and technology in a hospital setting. We thank the many supporters who worked so hard to make these services more accessible to those who need them.”
Also at the meeting, the commission received an update on the Dunnavant Square Cooperative District.
County Manager Alex Dudchock said there have been multiple meetings about a potential pedestrian tunnel, and preliminary design work has been completed. This is all conceptual at this time, Dudchock said, as a way to see how much more right of way would need to be added.
"There is a series of meetings on right of way needs that still needs to happen," Dudchock said.
Also at the meeting, the commission:
- Approved a resolution to purchase mix, bituminous plant for the highway department in accordance with the State of Alabama bid law.
- Accepted bids for doors and door hardware and for calcium hypochlorite tablets.
- Approved a digital information cooperative agreement between the county and ALDOT regarding digital orthophotography. The agreement allows for ALDOT and the county to use and share the digital land information between entities, rather than both entities taking the same photos.
- Approved a petition to vacate an area of public property.