Province awards $29M tender for Halifax hospital parkade

The Nova Scotia government has awarded a $29-million tender to design and construct one of two new parkadesplanned for the Halifax Infirmary hospital site to Lindsay Construction.

Work on a 500-space parking garage, located north of the Museum of Natural History, will begin in August.

The facility will have vehicle-charging stations and a pedway connection to the hospital across the street. The plan also includes burying the power lines on Summer Street and an open public space at the corner of Bell Road and Summer.

A second, larger parkade with about 1,000 spaces is planned for the former CBC property next to the Infirmary.

The existing parking garage on Robie Street will be taken down to allow for the construction of an expanded in-patient centre and operating rooms.

According to provincial officials, new parking facilities have to be in place before the expansion of the Infirmary site can take place.

A parking study indicated that 92 per cent of hospital visitors either drive, or are driven, to the hospital, creating a need for about 2,700 spaces.

More than 14,000people visit the QE2 Health Sciences Centre daily.