South Fayette commissioners delay decision on UPMC hospital
South Fayette commissioners voted to push back the vote on the implementation of a UPMC community hospital in Newbury Market.
A site plan for the 100-acre Newbury Market.
The flier that was anonymously sent to South Fayette residents prior to the meeting.
A vote on whether to allow a new UPMC community hospital in South Fayette’s Newbury Market will have to wait at least one more month.
Originally planned to be voted on at the July 12 township meeting, South Fayette commissioners instead decided to advertise a public hearing for the controversial topic. It will be the third public hearing on the subject since April, and it will take place before the start of the next regularly scheduled board meeting Aug. 9.
Township solicitor Jonathan Kamin said the reason for the postponement is the economic study the township received late last week.
“At the time we initially went ahead and asked for the report, we didn’t know when the report would be finalized,” Kamin said. “In order to follow the procedure, we would want to go ahead and advertise that hearing so there is sufficient public notice.”
The 22-page report was compiled by Fourth Economy, a Pittsburgh-based consulting firm, and presented by vice president Jerry Paytas at the meeting.
The location for the proposed hospital is on a 100-acre parcel at Newbury Market on Presto-Sygan Road, a new development for housing, restaurant and retail businesses.
In addition to the hospital, construction for an indoor driving range facility, TopGolf, will begin in August, following approval from the board earlier this year.
The 280,000-square foot community hospital would offer both in-patient and out-patient centers. The in-patient center is projected to contain 90 beds and serve 56,000 patients a year, while the out-patient center would see approximately 20,000 annual patients, Paytas said. The hospital would house about 570 employees between both centers.
The township planning commission recommended the project in March and a public hearing was held in April.
About 100 residents attended the July 12 township meeting, with opinions mixed, as some talked about the health and economic benefits, while others were concerned about the traffic and whether the hospital is a necessity.
Before the meeting, a flier was anonymously circulated around South Fayette to encourage residents to attend the meeting to “demand answers” about several aspects of the plan.
Kamin addressed the flier and a “news report” that both of which he said “impugned the integrity of this board and (commissioner) Dr. (Raymond) Pitetti as to his recusal or non-recusal.” Pitetti is a physician at children’s hospital. Kamin said the plan since the April meeting was to have Pitetti recuse himself from the vote.
“While this is an important issue for the township, there is no place for smearing or impugning the reputation of a fine commissioner and a fine person,” Kamin said. “I find it to be distasteful, which is the nicest thing I can say in the public meeting. I have other words that are four letters that more accurately describe what I saw.”
Along with Pitetti, Commissioner Lisa Malosh, who called into the meeting by phone, had previously stated she would also recuse herself from the vote. Malosh works at Presbyterian SeniorCare, which partners with UPMC. Malosh did vote to push back the vote, while Pitetti abstained.
“There’s no issue with commissioner Pitetti voting on the date of scheduling the hearing because that’s a mere ministerial act,” Kamin said. “But he is abstaining just to go ahead and make the media happy.”
Between direct, indirect and induced effects, the report predicts hospital operations will produce a total of 1,071 jobs in the county, 70 percent of which will be in South Fayette, according to the report. Apart from the direct employment at the hospital, indirect effects includes jobs that support the project, while induced effects includes the spending by workers in the area.
In total, Fourth Economy expects the operations will produce $52.3 million in labor income and $111.8 million in economic output, which Paytas said is about 12 percent of South Fayette’s economy.
Due to UPMC’s nonprofit status, they would not have to pay real estate tax to the township and the school district for the in-patient center. However, Paytas said they will pay property taxes for the much smaller out-patient center, which would occupy between 12 to 16 percent of the hospital’s square footage. Of the projected $559,510 UPMC will pay annually in taxes, about 70 percent will go to the school district and 30 percent to the township.
The construction of the hospital – if approved – would begin in 2018 and end in 2020, and cost $211.2 million.
The report expects minimal or no impacts to public safety, the school district or traffic compared to what could be put in the hospital’s place otherwise.
“Given the site’s location and the proximity to the state and the county roads, a lot of the traffic will be on roads not maintained by the township,” Paytas said. “A lot of the traffic being generated within the development is self contained within that Newbury development. … We didn’t see any significant impact on the traffic and road maintenance.”
Also during the meeting:
• The board unanimously voted on the off-leash dog zone at Fairview Park after six months of planning and discussion. Registration will open July 19, and residents can obtain a permit at the township office.
• A tax credit for volunteer firefighters was tabled until the next meeting so the board could discuss it with the township’s fire departments.
• The board waived a $102,000 traffic impact fee for the addition to the high school.
• Waste Management spoke at the meeting to clear up problems with the recycling system and discussed with the board ways to improve it.
• The board also unanimously approved an update to the emergency operations plan. The last update to the plan was in 2004.