Hospital expansion, Red Swan Inn before village

WARWICK-The Village Board will discuss two major projects at a work session on Monday, Sept. 26, - St. Anthony Community Hospital expansion and the Red Swan Inn. The board closed its public hearing last Monday night on St. Anthony Community Hospital's plan to expand its facility. Maryanne Johnson, an associate of Ted Fink, the village's planner, reported to the board that the traffic study submitted by the hospital was based on sound assumptions and very conservative. Johnson said that Fink had reviewed the study and felt the impact to area traffic due to the expansion would be minimal and only affected making a left onto Grand Street. "As far as Ted was concerned, the study was fine," Johnson said. No changes at the intersection of Maple Avenue and Grand Street are called for. The board has petitioned to name itself lead agency for the hospital's request for a special use permit but is awaiting word from the New York State Historic Preservation Office. The hospital is requesting approval to build a 10,500-square foot addition adjacent to Maple Avenue. The new construction, which has already received approval from the Architectural Review Board, will house 19 same-day surgery bays and two endoscopy suites. In addition, the plan calls for doubling the size of the Emergency Room, as well as raising the height of the canopy near the ER. Many ambulances are SUVs and sit higher than traditional ambulances. They can no longer fit under the canopy that is on the building now. The parking facility at Mt. Alverno will be enlarged and used by employees during the day shift. A plan for shuttle busses to transport employees back to the hospital is also being considered. Much shifting around inside the hospital is necessary to accommodate the proposed changes. There will be changes to the lobby, the cafeteria will move to the lower level, and the lab will be restructured, amongst other changes. The other major issue on the agenda is the Red Swan Inn. The Red Swan Inn developers have proposed building a new inn, resurrecting the original one that was destroyed by fire in the 1950s, on the property known as the Welling property or the Pioneer Farm. Included in the plan are residential housing units, commercial businesses, and retail establishments. The developers are asking that the village create a new zone that would change the nearly 11-acre property from residential to the floating hospitality zone.