[Doug]

Someone who actually experienced the General in person rather than through the perspective of activist groups like Friends of Medicare, would not miss any aspect of its sorry existence. It was a series of poorly constructed, dark and dreary institutional buildings with low ceilings, poor HVAC and issues with mould and asbestos. It had mostly ward rooms and insufficient day patient facilities. The expanse of surrounding parking lots turned the immediate area into a wasteland. The Lougheed government more or less set the General on course for the wrecking ball when it built the PLC in the NE and expanded the Rockyview Hospital in the SW. Healthcare facilities were so over built that portions of the PLC and Rockyview didn't open until after the General closed. It was a no brainer decision to invest in modern facilities and repurpose the site of the General. Hopefully the former Holy Cross Hospital site will eventually redevelop as well. While not as dumpy as the General, it's facilities were also completely obsolete.