QUINCY — Demolition of existing structures and site preparation for the new Quincy Valley Medical Center will begin in mid-to-late September. Quincy hospital board members approved authorization for the contractor, Graham Construction, to start the first phase of the project. The cost of the first phase is $3.2 million.

Kayla Van Lieshout, project manager for the Klosh Group, one of the consultants, said the contractors will be asking for approval for two additional phases.

“We’ve decided to do some breakout packages to do some early work,” Van Lieshout said. “That allows us to start early (and) it also allows us to start procurement on some materials.”

The authorization, approved at a special meeting Wednesday, will allow crews to work on demolishing two existing buildings on the site, as well as a manufactured home that was used as administrative offices. It also allows the contractors to order equipment that will take a long time to build, including sections of the heating-cooling and electrical systems. Joe Kunkel, the lead consultant on the project, said those components are custom builds.

The areas slated for demolition are being cleaned out now, which is the reason there’s a garbage container outside one of the buildings, Kunkel said.

Cost for the second authorization is estimated at $4.4 million. Van Lieshout said that will pay for pouring and preparing the foundation, buying the structural steel, working on the fire protection system and the building’s elevator. That should be ready by early September, she said.

The final authorization will be the rest of the cost for construction, estimated at about $30.5 million. It’s called the “guaranteed maximum price” and should be submitted for authorization in late October, Van Lieshout said.

Kunkel estimated construction could start sometime in November.

The total construction cost will be about $38 million. Quincy Hospital District voters approved a $55 million bond for construction in August 2022. The rest of the bond money, about $17 million, will pay for things like medical equipment.

During the design process, hospital officials decided to add a hydrotherapy pool in the physical therapy department as well as an infusion suite. Kunkel said those will be paid for out of interest earned from the construction bonds. The cost for both was estimated at about $675,000.

Van Lieshout said the only thing that could change the estimated cost is if there are changes to the project. As an example, she said the discovery of hazardous materials during demolition would require an adjustment to the project and the budget, a procedure called a change order.

Kunkel said the work will start once the project permits are issued by the city of Quincy, a process that should be complete for the first phase by mid-September. It could take a little longer than that, but he said he expected the project to be cleared for demolition by the end of September.

Cheryl Schweizer may be reached at [email protected].