Aurora will build care center in Burlington

City succeeds in convincing provider to keep robust presence here

By Ed Nadolski

Editor in Chief

Aurora Health Care announced plans Friday to invest $100 million in facility upgrades for western Racine and Walworth counties with the centerpiece being a new surgery center and clinic on the outskirts of Burlington.

The announcement reflects Aurora’s new approach to facility upgrades and new facilities needed to build market share in the area and fend off growing competition in a new era for health care.

According to Aurora’s new regional market president Lisa Just, Aurora Memorial Hospital in Burlington and Aurora Lakeland Medical Center near Elkhorn remain a key part of Aurora’s strategy.

“It’s not about facilities, it’s about people,” Just said.

The news was embraced by Burlington Mayor Bob Miller, who has been involved in sometimes tense discussions with Aurora since the state’s largest health care provider announced in late 2012 that it was closing the labor and delivery department at Aurora Memorial Hospital of Burlington.

“This is a shot in the arm for the (Burlington area),” Miller said. “It’s a win-win for everyone.”

For Miller, who jointly made the announcement Friday afternoon alongside Just, the plans sustain his efforts to keep a wide range of medical services in the city along with the 900-plus jobs Aurora currently provides at its various Burlington market facilities.

The new surgery center and clinic will likely be built on 70-acre parcel of land along Burlington’s bypass highway near Highway 36 and Spring Valley Road. The land is currently in the Town of Lyons but Aurora would seek annexation to the city in order to receive sewer and water utilities and other city services. Miller said the property is appropriate for annexation, however, there may be a few hurdles to overcome along the way.

Aurora currently has a contract to purchase the property and is in the midst of a six-month due diligence period before the deal can be consummated.

Once that is complete, Just said Aurora will be able to release additional details regarding the plans for the site and the scope of services that will be offered.

“We’ve been a partner in this community for more than 20 years,” Just said. “I think this is the next step in that commitment. I think it’s the right thing to do for our patients in this community.”

The new facility is intended to serve the entire Burlington and Walworth patient services market. In addition to roughly $30 million in hospital upgrades – most of that at Memorial Hospital – Aurora intends to spend $70 million on the new facilities to include an urgent care center in Delavan and a clinic at a yet-to-be determined location in Walworth.

A significant portion of that money will be used for physician recruitment, Just said.

The location of the proposed ambulatory surgery center is in proximity to the growing Lake Geneva market where Aurora is battling competition from Mercy Health System, which operates Mercy Walworth and Medical Center at the intersection of highways 50 and 67.

Just said Aurora plans to break ground on the new center in 2015 with an opening eyed in 2016.

Miller said it can’t happen soon enough.

“We look forward to working with Aurora and get this thing rolling as soon as we can,” he said.

“There are going to be some hills that need to be climbed, but everything that needs to be done can be,” Miller added.

City feared it would lose hospital

Many may remember that it was just over a year ago when Aurora’s decision’s to close the obstetrics department at the Burlington hospital touched off fear among local officials that Aurora was planning to scale back its Burlington operations in favor of a regional medical center located elsewhere – most likely Lake Geneva.

At the time Miller didn’t hesitate in saying he would entertain offers from other health care providers to provide obstetrics and other services in Burlington.

However, even Miller said he was surprised by the rapid response he received.

The city was contacted by officials from United Hospital System of Kenosha to gauge interest in the possibility of building another hospital in the city. Miller said he also had discussions with at least one other provider that expressed interest only if Aurora pulled out or heavily scaled back its Burlington operations.

However, since mid-2013, Miller has said the city’s first priority was attempting to convince Aurora to maintain a full range of services here.

Concern over the hospital’s future in Burlington dates back more than a decade when Aurora initially announced that it had plans to consolidate Memorial Hospital and Lakeland Medical Center into a single regional medical center. Although Aurora identified several potential sites at the time – including one in roughly the same location as the new site – those plans were put on a shelf as the health care provider pursued projects in other markets.

Both the city and Aurora went silent on the issue late last spring when Aurora Medical Group Executive Vice President Jeffrey Bailet announced the organization was examining its options for the area and wouldn’t have any announcements until the end of 2013.

“Aurora Health Care’s board of directors is evaluating the organization’s strategic needs for clinical services and sites, including those in Burlington and the surrounding communities,” Bailet said at the time. “Capital expenditures of this magnitude (potentially hundreds of millions of dollars) require a thoughtful, analytical process.”

According to Adam Beeson, a senior communications official with Aurora, the Burlington hospital currently employs 635 people and Lakeland Medical Center employs 528.

Check back later for updates to this story and pick up a copy of the Feb. 6 Burlington Standard Press for in-depth coverage.