BY ELENI HIMARAS

reporter@ltview.com

The development of Lakeway Regional Medical Center marked another milestone last week as hospital board members delivered a check to city hall for more than $190,000 – officially paying off all of their building permits.

“This really represents the forward progress… It’s not really about the fees but it’s a celebration of the project and what it means to the city,” Mayor Steve Swan said as he accepted the check from hospital board president Dr. Sam DeMaio.

Groundbreaking for the hospital took place in October and at the time developers expected vertical construction by the first quarter of 2009, but an evolving plan to add more services to the hospital has delayed that projection until early summer. In recent months, DeMaio said there has been an overwhelming response from doctors jumping on board with the project and they are now planning an expanded obstetrics unit with a neo-natal intensive care unit.

“Before we can start moving dirt in anyway, we have to have that floor plan,” said hospital board member Dan Brouillette.

Creating the floor plan, he said, is not just about making everything fit but making sure that it all flows together with certain units next to each other.

“The whole focus is the hospital,” DeMaio said.

An underlying message sent by the check is the hospital showing that even during the economic turndown, it is securing the funding it needs.

“This says they have the financing. Getting financing in this day and age is quite an accomplishment,” Swan said.  “I know the citizens of Lakeway are going to be as excited as we are.”