Brookwood files lawsuit against St. Vincent’s One Nineteen to stop expansion

Published 5:36 pm Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Brookwood Medical Center recently filed a lawsuit against St. Vincent's Health System to stop the One Nineteen campus expansion. (File)

Brookwood Medical Center recently filed a lawsuit against St. Vincent’s Health System to stop the One Nineteen campus expansion. (File)

By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

HOOVER–Brookwood Medical Center filed a lawsuit this month in the Montgomery County Circuit Court against St. Vincent’s One Nineteen to stop the facility’s expansion.

One Nineteen is located on Cahaba Valley Road in Shelby County.

In the lawsuit filed Nov. 12, Brookwood requests an injunction to stop construction work on the site for One Nineteen’s proposed ambulatory surgery center.

The suit claims St. Vincent’s did not start construction soon enough in accordance with state law.

“Our St. Vincent’s One Nineteen ambulatory surgery center project has met all regulatory requirements,” STVHS spokeswoman Liz Moore said in a statement. “Throughout the planning process we have regularly communicated the project status to and received continued approval from SHPDA for the project. Consequently, we do not anticipate any delays to our project timeline.”

In addition to St. Vincent’s One Nineteen, the Alabama State Health Planning and Development Agency and SHPDA Executive Director Alva Lambert are listed as defendants in the suit.

“St. Vincent’s is committed to providing the community with the right care at the right time and in the right place,” STVHS Interim President and CEO Neeysa Biddle said in a statement. “Increasingly that means outpatient care delivered within a coordinated system of care in community settings, not in more expensive hospital environments. The St. Vincent’s One Nineteen project enables us to continue to fulfill this commitment in an area we already serve. We are excited to build on the strong foundation of services already available on our One Nineteen campus.”

A groundbreaking ceremony for One Nineteen’s expansion project was held Oct. 30.

The 40,000-square-foot expansion is expected to be completed in fall 2015 and will include a professional office building, operating rooms, an urgent care center and an ambulatory surgery center.

Brasfield and Gorrie is the general contractor, and Birchfield, Penuel and Associates is the architect for the project.

One Nineteen will mark 10 years of occupancy on the campus in Shelby County in January 2015.