Whitby’s proposed hospital still has planning and land-transfer steps to clear before construction can begin, according to Mayor Elizabeth Roy’s monthly newsletter. Lakeridge Health’s capital planning grant applications are under review by the Ministry of Health, while work continues to transfer provincial land for the hospital.
The update outlines the work remaining after the province announced a planning grant in August 2024 and confirmed Whitby as the location for the new hospital. Roy said several important steps are still required to move the project toward construction.
The hospital site involves land currently controlled by the Ministry of Transportation. According to Roy, the province, Lakeridge Health and its partners are continuing to work on completing the transfer.
Roy said she has met with both the transportation and health ministers to press for progress on the project. She also meets regularly with Whitby MPP Lorne Coe and senior Lakeridge Health leadership to discuss its status.
From site selection to provincial planning
Lakeridge Health selected Whitby as its preferred location for a new Durham Region hospital in January 2022, following a site-selection process, the newsletter says.
In February 2024, Roy launched a community advocacy campaign urging the province to confirm the planning grant needed for the project to advance.
Thousands of Whitby residents signed a letter calling for that next step, according to Roy. Residents also shared personal accounts of why a new hospital was important to them, and the campaign attracted media coverage across the Greater Toronto Area.
The provincial announcement followed in August 2024. Roy described the planning grant and confirmation of Whitby as the hospital’s location as a significant milestone, while noting that further work remained before building could start.
The latest update identifies the ministry’s review of Lakeridge Health’s applications and the hospital land transfer as continuing parts of that process. The planning grant announcement did not complete those steps.
Roy said securing the hospital has been among her main priorities as mayor and that she will continue advocating for the project to advance from a provincial commitment to construction.
