$6.5 MILLION GIFT FROM FORMER PATIENT WILL HELP PAY FOR $230M EXPANSION
Staff Reports
A $230 million, 300,000 square foot expansion of Suburban Hospital in
Bethesda, Md., would start construction between 2011 and 2013.
Rendering courtesy of Suburban Hospital
During the past couple of years, Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Md., has been trying to overcome strong neighborhood resistance to its proposed $230 million expansion plan. But recently, the hospital received quite a vote of support from one former patient.
The hospital announced that the late Betty Phillips, who lived in nearby Chevy Chase, Md., left the Suburban Hospital Foundation a $6.5 million gift, the largest in the hospital’s history.
Suburban officials say the unrestricted gift will be used to help pay for facility projects taking place over the next several years.
The hospital is in the midst of planning and requesting local planning approvals for a 300,000 square foot expansion, which is scheduled for construction between 2011 and 2013.
According to foundation officials, the gift was a surprise. Local news reports indicate that Ms. Phillips was a legal secretary and was married to Percy W. Phillips, an attorney. The two were patients at the hospital but never indicated that a bequest would be coming the foundation’s way.
In the meantime, Suburban continues to plan for its proposed expansion amid organized resistance from an adjacent neighborhood that contains about 300 homes.
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