New Hospital To Be Built In Glenpool

NewsOn6.com & Dan Bewley, News On 6

GLENPOOL, Oklahoma -- The city of Glenpool is getting a hospital.

During a news conference Tuesday morning, officials said the facility would be called Divine Providence Medical Center and will be built at 156th Street South and U.S. Highway 75.

"I am excited to announce that we've taken the first step towards bringing comprehensive medical care to Glenpool," Glenpool Mayor Shayne Buchanan said.

The hospital will be 128,000 square feet, two stories, and house 72 beds.

"It is great that we are being able to bring this facility here because this is really an underserved area in the region, in the southwest part of Tulsa County," Buchanan said.

The $70 million project is being handled by the Tulsa development company 5 Starr Group. They say the hospital will have 150 employees and the first year's payroll will be $6.5 million.

The city sold this land to the hospital developers for $2 million, it will then use that money to build infrastructure like roads, water, and sewer. Still, some are worried this could end up costing the city more than expected.

"It's a good thing, possibly, for the city of Glenpool as long as it doesn't become a drain on us down the road," Tommy Carner, a Glenpool resident, said.

Tommy Carner says the city has already taken on more debt than it can handle; $22 million in the last three years.

"I think we are about tapped out as far as we can go financially," he said.

The mayor says the city has research to show it shouldn't be a concern.

"Even though, yes, we have taken on some debt it's no different than a person going out and buying a house," he said. "They go out and buy what they can afford and they make the payments and that's what we've done here at the city."

The developers hope to break ground this summer.  Once construction begins, they say, it should be another 18 months before the hospital opens.