D.C. Councilman Vincent Gray, D-Ward 7, says his proposal to build a new hospital and attract grocery and other retailers to the east side of the city would cost $486 million.
Gray revealed the figure as he led a public hearing on Friday, saying council’s health committee has allocated $136 million toward the project. The Committee on Transportation and the Environment, which is chaired by Councilwoman Mary Cheh, D-Ward 3, has also allocated an additional $100 million.
He only needs about $100 million more for the hospital and about $150 million more for the retail piece of the project, he said.
“Think about it: For $486 million, less than the cost of the Nationals’ baseball stadium, we will quite literally change the lives of the residents who live on the east end of the city,” Gray said. “A true health care system will grow, jobs will be created and residents will be able to buy affordably priced healthy foods and household products and clothing right in their own neighborhoods.”