Shovels hit the ground last week at the Birtinya site of Wishlist’s most ambitious project, Wishlist Centre.
Serendipitously situated at 1 Bright Place, Wishlist Centre (Stage One) will provide affordable transitionary accommodation, complemented by unique services to support patients and their families’ health journey.
Wishlist chief executive officer Lisa Rowe said the $14 million project would ’up the ante’ for supportive environments dedicated to patients and their families needing ongoing treatment at the Sunshine Coast University Hospital (SCUH).
“The sod-turn is a major milestone for a project that we have been working on for the past five years,“ Ms Rowe explained.
“Wishlist Centre will be a warm, supportive and stimulating environment with each of the four levels delivering a different service or activity to provide physical, spiritual, emotional and psychological support for patients and their families.
“The pandemic has only highlighted the need for Wishlist Centre, with mental health and wellbeing remaining crucial topics of concern in public healthcare. Through collaboration and engagement, we identified the need for more low-cost accommodation to complement our existing Reed House and Wishlist House and while doing so, learned that services to improve the mental health and wellbeing of our community were also required.“
Wishlist has collaborated with not-for-profits, non-government organisations and education partners on unique initiatives that will support patients and their families within Wishlist Centre. These services include cancer and mental health support programmes, student placement options, vocational pathways and social enterprise.
The nation’s largest privately-owned building company Hutchinson Builders has been awarded the design and construction contract for the four-level facility opposite the SCUH. The project expects to employ up to 170 different contractors on-site and indirectly create about 60 full-time roles.
Scott Hutchinson, chairman of Hutchinsons Builders, said as a local Sunshine Coast builder, Hutchies was proud to be working with Wishlist to help bring this purpose-designed centre to life.
“Wishlist Centre will play a pivotal role in supporting the region’s communities in times of need,“ Mr Hutchinson said.
Wishlist Centre will offer 18 spacious and light-filled accommodation, with single, family, and interconnecting rooms and a podium level with communal spaces for guests to use, including kitchen and laundry facilities, along with break-out spaces for community activities and therapy services to support the patients and their families.
The facility is supported by a $12 million Federal Government grant through the Australian Government’s Department of Health, Community Health and Hospital Program.
Wishlist Centre (Stage One) is expected to open mid-next year, with Wishlist currently fundraising for an additional $2 million to ensure that, once open, the facility is all it must be for patients and their families.
