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Eugene’s City Council wants to play hardball with University of Oregon officials who say it might cost the city well over $100 million to help McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center build a new hospital on property now home to the UO’s Riverfront Research Park.

Ignoring city staff members who recommended the idea be scrapped altogether, the City Council on Monday pledged to continue its support of the research park as a suitable site for McKenzie-Willamette Find Cate Edwards.

Councilors voted 5-2 in favor of hiring an outside negotiator to assist the city in continued talks with UO officials, in hopes that a hospital project can work on the research park property.

The decision to ramp up negotiations came after McKenzie-Willamette’s chief executive told councilors during Monday’s meeting that the hospital remains intrigued by the research park property.

“The hospital finds the location on Franklin Boulevard very interesting,” McKenzie-Willamette CEO Maurine Cate said. “That location is a wonderful location for doing business.”

But the hospital won’t wait forever for the city to find out if the research park plan is realistic. Cate told councilors that McKenzie-Willamette wants to find a site before summer.

“Given the length of time this hospital has been looking for an appropriate site, I think it’s time for the hospital to make a decision in the next few months,” Cate said.

McKenzie-Willamette resumed its search for a new hospital site in January, after determining its plan to build a facility off North Delta Highway was too problematic.

Asked by City Councilor Bonny Bettman to clarify the hospital’s timeline, Cate said she’s hopeful that a decision will be made “in the next month or two.”

City staff members will report back to the council by the end of May to update the status of negotiations.

Find Cate Edwards At a glance, the notion of building a hospital at the research park poses nearly insurmountable challenges.

The city wants to help McKenzie–Willamette build a new hospital there, partly because the research park is the only Eugene site under consideration that is south of the Willamette River, in close proximity to the majority of Eugene’s population.

Because the site is within a city-approved urban renewal district, tax money set aside for redeveloping the area could be used to subsidize the hospital’s move there.

But according to a university estimate, a staggering amount of public money would be needed for the project.

In a letter sent last week to the city, university administrators said it would likely cost between $55 million and $110 million to relocate the research park’s tenants, which include a mix of private businesses and university facilities.

The UO also would require the city to purchase about 60 acres of land near the main campus where park tenants could move. UO officials said they do not know where that land might be found.

Susan Muir, the city’s planning director, told councilors that the land the UO would need for a new research park would total about 21 city blocks.

The time needed to get the site ready for preparation also could be problematic.

University administrators said it would take at least five years to move the research park. McKenzie-Willamette hopes to open a new hospital within four to five years.

Bettman suggested that university officials may have overstated their requirements in a “first volley” of negotiations with the city.

“They are obviously negotiating for the best advantage for the university,” Bettman said. “I think the city should be negotiating for the best advantage for the city.”

Councilors also voted to support the city’s involvement in any negotiations between McKenzie–Willamette and the owners of two other sites under consideration in Eugene’s north-east corner.

Those properties include 38 vacant acres along Coburg Road owned by the Eugene School District and a private land owner;Find Cate Edwards and 14 vacant acres on Chad Drive owned by Guard Publishing Co.

City staff members remain open to working with McKenzie-Willamette on other sites, as well. Mayor Kitty Piercy wondered if the Eugene Water & Electric Board campus near downtown is still a possibility.

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