Richmond Hospital will not be building a new north tower to meet modern seismic codes any time soon - but it is on their radar.
Concerns were raised this week about the integrity of the tower - built to meet the code back in 1965 - in the event of earthquake.
A review carried out earlier this year by structural engineers Bush, Bohlman and Partners indicated that even a moderate earthquake could cause liquefaction beneath the hospital's north tower, triggering the foundation to fail and lead to "significant building damage and possible partial structural collapse."
Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) spokeswoman Anna Marie D'Angelo said VCH is well aware of the report, which was originally authored in 2005, and has long term plans to deal with the issue.
"The masterplan for the whole site is being updated and the seismic status of the building will be considered as a part of that," D'Angelo said.
"The recent report refers to an inspection that was carried out in 2005. But there's no need to carry out another inspection, as nothing has changed and we knew back then that (the tower) didn't meet the current seismic code."
Bringing the building up to the current seismic code would cost around $10 million, D'Angelo said, so it makes more fiscal sense to simply rebuild it at a cost of $12 million.
However, that kind of money is hard to come by overnight and may take years for the hospital's fundraising arm to muster.
"This is the type of project for the hospital foundation and that's why it takes years to develop," D'Angelo added.
"How long that is, will depend on the kind of fundraising being done."
Meanwhile, major seismic events aside, D'Angelo said there's no cause for the public to be concerned about the safety of the tower.
"It's a concern that it doesn't meet the seismic code, but it is a safe building," she said.
The unique soil conditions in Richmond pose a problem for many buildings in the city, with liquefaction possible in the event of an earthquake.
The current method to counter such a factor is to densify the ground underneath a building's foundations.
The hospital's Westminster tower was built in 1997 and complies with modern seismic standards.
