VCU plans to bring medical facility to New Kent

As more and more people continue to flock to New Kent County and call it a home, the need for emergency services continue to grow. A project that has been in the works for more than five years may soon address those needs.

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) announced plans to provide an emergency care center in New Kent County on Mar. 14. The location of the center is projected to be in the Bottoms Bridge area of the county across from the Food Lion on Route 60 (Pocahontas Trail). The western part of New Kent continues to be one of the fastest growing areas in the county as it is already planned to see a new elementary school built within the next few years.

In August 2015, Virginia’s Department of Health recommended a denial of a facility in New Kent. The construction of a Level 2 Trauma Center facility was denied due to other facilities being within a 30-minute drive. That response upset county leaders, leading to Del. Christopher Peace to get involved in the situation.

From there, citizens from New Kent and surrounding localities began to lobby for the building, pointing to travel times of nearly a half-hour to the nearest hospital. Research by Douglas R. Harris of the state health department had the adjudication officer comment that the growth of the number of residents in the eastern portion of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area warranted the project.

New Kent County Administrator Rodney Hathaway pushed forward with the submission, speaking with the Virginia Department of Health and continuing to follow up with the application.

Spearheaded by Peace’s outreach, a certificate of public need for a Level 2 Trauma Center was granted by the Virginia Health Commissioner.

But now, VCU has stepped in to apparently fill the medical void in the county. Currently, VCU’s Medical College of Virginia (MCV) serves as the only Level 1 Trauma Center in Central Virginia.

Hathaway said that the realization of a local medical facility has picked up steam since 2017.

“It’s been about two years now and they’re going through the local permitting process,” Hathaway said during a Friday morning interview. “They are pretty close to the end of that process.

“We have not received an actual target when to break ground, but we are expecting to hear something very soon once they have received their permits,” the county administrator concluded.

*Reporter Robb Johnson contributed to this story.*