Sod turn marks symbolic start to $940 million project.

Construction is now officially under way on the $940 million redevelopment of Royal Prince Alfred (RPA) Hospital after Premier Chris Minns, Health Minister Ryan Park and Planning Minister Paul Scully turned the first sod on the project. 

Mr Minns, Mr Park and Mr Scully made the symbolic start to the project on Thursday 19 October after a smoking ceremony conducted by Uncle Brendan Kerin from the NSW Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council. 

Mr Minns said the redevelopment would be an important project for the whole of the state. 

“This is an exciting initiative for the state and for the government - a $940 million dollar investment into crucial health infrastructure, right in the heart of the city,” he said. 

“It will be populated by men and women who give their working lives to keeping the people of NSW healthy and ensuring they’ve got world class healthcare in our public hospital system.  

“We want to make sure that that world-class healthcare is delivered in a brand-new hospital.”  

Mr Park said the project would enhance the world-leading healthcare already provided at RPA and transform the campus. 

“At the completion we’ll have about 700 beds, hundreds more beds than currently available,” Mr Park said. 

“We will be doubling the capacity of our ED; a 50 per cent increase in our ICU capacity.  

“We’ll be making sure that virtual health is inbuilt in our technology and data we have at this new facility.” 

Mr Park said the ‘complex build' would ensure RPA could deliver the “high-quality, patient-focused health facilities that staff, consumers and local communities need”. 

“RPA is one of Australia’s leading hospitals, renowned for its excellence in providing innovative health care and education for the 740,000 people who live in the Sydney Local Health District and the more than 1 million people who visit the area for work, study or to see loved ones on a daily basis.”  

The $940 million project is the biggest transformation of RPA in its 140-year history.

The centrepiece of the redevelopment will be a new 15-storey tower on the eastern side of the hospital campus. 

The Department of Planning and Environment gave State Significant Development Approval for the project in late September, paving the way for the start of early works on the redevelopment.

The approval followed a two-year planning process that included extensive consultation with clinicians, operational staff, community members and local and state government agencies. 

The redevelopment will deliver more state-of-the-art operating theatre space - including a hybrid theatre to facilitate complex surgeries, double the recovery space, and a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit with 30 per cent more capacity. 

Main construction works on the RPA redevelopment are due to start early in 2024, with the project forecast to be completed in 2028.