The Western Health Board is planning to develop a state-of-the-art community hospital and healthcare facility for Tuam if its tender for the site of the former Grove hospital is accepted.
The board has submitted a new tender for the Bon Secours-owned property after its first offer was refused by the sisters and the existing premises and lands were put on the open market.
The closing date for the submission of tenders was September 12th and the new chief executive officer of the Bon Secours, Mr Pat Lyons, said it was going through the tender process but he did not know when this would be complete.
He could not say whether the Western Health Board's proposal would be more favourably looked upon than others and could not comment further. However, there were a number of parties involved in the process and they would be informed as soon as he had the relevant information.
East Galway TD Mr Ulick Burke has urged the nuns and their trustees to accept the board's tender for a development which he said would exceed the initial expectations of the people of Tuam who were shocked by the announcement that the Grove was to close.
The board requires the entire greenfield site as well as the existing hospital premises for its development which would include a community hospital, a dementia and respite unit, a primary care unit, a mental health resource, a regional childcare training centre, an ambulance centre and sheltered housing.
Mr Burke said it was a comprehensive plan for the extension of health services and the development of a community-integrated project for Tuam and the surrounding areas of north-east Galway, south Mayo and Roscommon.
The existing hospital building is a protected structure which has already been found to be unsuitable for continued use as a hospital. The board plans to adapt this premises for administration purposes.
The old Grove building was originally built as a private house in the 18th century before becoming a diocesan school. The dioceses donated the property to the Bon Secours sisters for use as a hospital facility for the people of Tuam.
"As a member of the Western Health Board," Mr Burke said, "I would be very hopeful that the tender from the board will be successful and that the management of the Bons and their trustees will be willing to provide the site for the continuation of enhanced health services for the people of Tuam. This would have been the intention of the sisters and the trustees of the Bons according to their original statements."
He said nobody could doubt the sincerity of the health board and its commitment to the provision of services in Tuam, including those people who claimed it was not serious about acquiring the site.
He would be disappointed if the trustees allowed the site to be sold for another use as it was ideally located in the centre of Tuam to continue as a hospital with ancillary services as planned.
No other area within the region should fear that this proposal would take resources away from them as the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, had indicated that any funding provided for the development of new services in Tuam would be outside the provisions of the National Development Plan.