The University of Ottawa’s Heart Institute is undergoing an expansion to better meet the needs of community members and enhance technological services. The expansion will establish an additional 147,000 square feet of space, including a four-storey state-of-the-art clinical addition. The existing facility is also being redeveloped.

“Today marks a historic milestone as we begin the construction of the most significant expansion of the Heart Institute since its foundation,” said Dr. Thierry Mesana, president and chief executive officer of the Heart Institute, at a groundbreaking ceremony on Jan. 15. “Our new facility will not only reinforce our cardiovascular care, research, and training capacities, but it will also ensure that our patients continue to receive world-class care, from an extraordinary team evolving in a state-of-the-art environment. This is our promise.”

In conjunction with the expansion, renovations will update approximately 59,000 square feet of existing building space. The improved facility will include support spaces for the heart catheterization/electrophysiology suite, surgical suite and the cardiac intensive care unit. The building’s cardiac imaging suite will also be relocated and expanded.

The $200-million facility will be developed through financing from the Ontario government ($162-million) and resources obtained from fundraising efforts. PCL Constructors Canada will be responsible for the construction of the facility, which has an expected completion date in late 2019.