This lodge can not come soon enough and will make a big difference in the lives of many cancer patients within the region!

I am wondering why the construction costs of the Gateway seniors' assisted living residential units as well as housing for the homeless are paid for by the province without a need to fund raise a significant amount to cover captial while temporary housing for cancer patients from out of town has to be augmented by about $8 million through fund raising. Will the Canadian Cancer society be paying for much of that?

I am also looking at the price tag. 36 beds or 18 units that might be the size of a studio apartment.

That is $710,000 per studio apartment or $355 thousand per bed.

I believe thst is at least 40% higher than the Gateway development. WHY? None of the activities and their likely space requirements are that unusual and certainly no more complex than those provided in the Gateway development.

What is wrong with building a University residence type apartment building with a four bedroom cluster around a common kitchenette/dining/living room area with each bedroom having a private bathroom?

Even with some fixtures and finishes that can withstand a high impact use, such an apartment unit, with costs covering common area spaces such as a kitchen facility, dining area, exercise rooms and office spaces for care staff, such units should not cost more than say $400,000 or even $500,000 per unit or $100 to $125 thousand per bed.

That is a far cry from $355,000 per bed.

"...the balance will be raised through special fund raising campaigns."

I have no problem with that and I will give gladly as often as necessary.

Are they actually going to get some sort of cancer treatment here? Are we still going to have to travel to Van. for chemotherapy or radiation? This just sounds like a glorified hospice house to me. Only 36 beds? I've lost 3 to cancer in my family alone. 37,45 and 5yrs. It amazes me to no end that Prince George would battle for 51 million dollar Arts Centre, and only 12 million for cancer.
I hope I'm wrong, but I assumed a cancer treatment centre being built here in P.G. was going to keep from traveling to Vancouver for treatment.

The treatment will be given in a cancer clinic which will be built at a cost of $100+ million adjacent and connected to the hospital. While primary treatment will occur in the clinic, I assume follow up treatment will occur on an "out-patient" basis.

So, if you live in PG, you are likely to be able to go home and come back to the Clinic as required by the type of treatment prescribed.

At the same time, patients from out of town will have to have a place to stay during their Clinic based therapy. That is my understanding what the primary purpose of the lodge will be. I doubt that the patient services in the lodge will be much different than for the seniors in the Gateway assisted living residences.

"Are they actually going to get some sort of cancer treatment here? Are we still going to have to travel to Van. for chemotherapy or radiation"

Chemotherapy is ALREADY available at PGRH and it has been for many years. The expansion will add radiation therapy to the compliment of services available locally.

There may still be a need for some people to seek treatment in Vancouver when it comes to specialized care, complex surgeries or stuff like that, but hopefully the expansion will cover off the bulk of our needs. With time maybe we will be able to offer a full compliment of services, but we'll also need to attract the medical professionals who can undertake those services. Of course, being able to do that leads us into all other kinds of discussions (air quality, quality of life, etc.).

The patients lodge is a good step forward and it will help us serve our entire Region more effectively. Like gus noted, it would primarily serve people who need to come to PG to get treatments and not PG residents themselves.

thanks for the reply