Grafton board approves planned Aurora hospital

Columbia St. Mary's president raises objections

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, December 17, 2007

Grafton - At a standing-room-only meeting with more than 200 people present Monday night, the Village Board unanimously approved three measures needed by Aurora Health Care to build a four-story hospital with 400,000 square feet of space.

The votes on annexation, a zoning change and the site plan came despite the objections of the top executive of Columbia St. Mary's, which owns a hospital about five miles to the south.

Before the votes, Village President James Brunnquell said one of Grafton's goals was to attract more businesses, and Aurora will provide 600 good-paying jobs with people who will be involved in the community.

Aurora, the state's largest health care system, said in early August it planned to build a hospital in Grafton, and it had completed a deal to buy Advanced Healthcare, the area's largest physician group, employing about 250 doctors.

In late September, Aurora announced plans to build a medical center northwest of Highway 60 and Port Washington Road.

The board on Monday night initially gave Aurora and Advanced Healthcare representatives more than 75 minutes to present their case, which included video testimonials from Green Bay Mayor Jim Schmidt and Fox Valley businesspeople about Aurora's Green Bay hospital, which opened in 2001.

It was the fourth hospital in the Green Bay area, and the people videotaped said the competition had helped slow the increase in the cost of health care.

The meeting began at 7 p.m., and it was not until 8:20 that Leo P. Brideau, Columbia St. Mary's chief executive officer and president, was given an opportunity to speak in opposition to the Aurora plans. Columbia St. Mary's has a hospital about five miles to the south in Mequon.

5-minute rebuttal

Brideau gave a five-minute counter-presentation in which he argued that the Aurora medical center, which will include an 80,000-square-foot medical office building, will cost more than $100 million.

Brideau maintained that the cost of this facility "will fall to the employers and employees" in Ozaukee County through increased health care costs. The two hospital chains will compete for nurses, "and it's a great day to be a nurse in this community," he said.

After Brideau's talk, Brunnquell allowed two people to counter Brideau's arguments, including a retired University of Wisconsin economist from Madison.

Brunnquell then said he would allow Grafton residents to speak on the issues, but not people who did not live in the village. At that point, about 25 Columbia St. Mary's staffers and supporters left the meeting.

"We will step back and review our options," Brideau said outside the meeting about what Columbia St. Mary's planned to do now. "They (Grafton officials) didn't want to hear the whole story."

In a memorandum on the possible impact of the medical center, Grafton Police Chief Charles Wenten said, "I believe that it is probable that this proposed health care facility will require a relative significant service demand on the Grafton Police Department consistent with a commercial development of 480,000 square feet."