A glitch in some last-minute testing of safety equipment has meant a three-week delay in getting patients and staff moved into the new HOpe Centre for mental health treatment.
Politicians and mental health advocates from the North Shore gathered in September to celebrate completion of the new $62 million psychiatric treatment and mental health education centre.
The original move-in for patients and staff was supposed to be this week.
But thanks to some last minute problems, staff will be digging through packed up boxes in the old psychiatric ward for a few extra weeks.
The delay came about after a second test of safety systems in the new facility was done by a contractor testing components one at a time - rather than all at once, as required by City of North Vancouver.
That, in turn, delayed the issuing of a permanent occupancy permit for the building - and meant movers had to be rebooked, said Anna Marie D'Angelo, spokeswoman for Vancouver Coastal Health.
"This is not so unusual in such a big project," she added.
An occupancy permit for the building has now been granted, said D'Angelo.
Most of the patients and staff are now scheduled to move into the new building Dec. 10 and 11, with paramedics moving in to the new ambulance station a week earlier on Dec. 2. The new facility at Lions Gate Hospital will house a 26-bed inpatient psychiatric unit, mental health outpatient services, the new ambulance station, as well as a University of British Columbia medical education centre for training future doctors.
The centre replaces the old psychiatric ward at Lions Gate known as A2, which first opened its doors in 1929 and has been beset by numerous problems including mould and insect infestations.
