Members of the New York State Nurses Association rally during the Labor Day parade in Buffalo calling for the building of a new Brooks-TLC facility.

A concerted push for a new Brooks-TLC Hospital System facility takes another step this morning. Beginning at 11:30 a.m., hospital workers, patients and local leaders will be calling on the state Department of Health to release more than $70 million so the facility can be built in the village of Fredonia.

In an email distributed Wednesday by the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce, Brooks-TLC officials called on community members to be a part of the event at 529 Central Ave., Dunkirk. “We are calling upon local business leaders to come show your support in order to keep health care local,” the email said. “Without Brooks-TLC, we (along with our family, friends and employees) will be at the mercy of a potential 45-minute drive to the nearest health care facility.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see a new regional hospital, one built to reflect what our community needs and one which expands access to and improves the quality of care. Please help Brooks-TLC see this come to fruition. Any and all support will be much appreciated.”

In the works for more than a week, the rally is being sponsored by the State Employees International Union 1199 and the New York State Nurses Association. Hospital leaders, including current Chief Executive Officer Ken Morris, are also expected to attend.

“I work in the Emergency Department, and I know adding mere minutes to a patient’s wait time can be the difference between life and death,” said employee Kenny Long, a registered nurse. “If our hospital closed, like Lakeshore Hospital did in 2020, it would mean even longer travel times and decreased emergency pre-hospital services, which can worsen health outcomes, especially during inclement weather. Ignoring this issue puts our family and friends at risk.”

Plans for the facility, which would be off East Main Street in Fredonia almost across the road from the Fredonia Central School District campus, call for emergency services with 12 bays, 15 medical and surgical beds, four surgical suites and two rooms for procedure, imaging with CT scans, MRI and ultrasound, stat lab services, a pharmacy, support services and a helipad.

Officials — from the state and those who served locally on a commission regarding the hospital’s future — believe the new facility would reduce deficits that totaled a combined $55 million from 2018 to 2021. “As a Brooks Memorial Hospital employee of over 21 years and a nurse for over 14 years, I can tell you that our current hospital is outdated and inadequate to meet our community’s needs,” Long said. “We need to build a new Brooks Memorial Hospital, now!”

New York state began setting aside funding for a new Brooks-TLC in 2016. However, due to a lack of urgency by the board of directors and uncertainty regarding the first site that was chosen in the town of Pomfret, the project stalled. COVID-19 also pushed back further progress due to an overburdened health system during the first 18 months of the pandemic.

Since the new hospital plans have been announced, this is the first major involvement by any union on the plans. 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is the largest and fastest-growing healthcare union in America and represents more than 450,000 nurses and caregivers throughout Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Florida.

The New York State Nurses Association represents more than 42,000 members in New York state. It is New York’s largest union and professional association for registered nurses and is an affiliate of National Nurses United, AFL-CIO, the country’s largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses, with more than 225,000 members nationwide.

A rally organized by hospital officials in June 2022 and held at the Clarion Hotal led to a crowd of a little more than 100 turning out in support and did not include many political and community leaders.