Marco Group is pleased to announce that the New Adult Mental Health & Addictions Facility (NAMHAF) in St. John’s, NL  has been awarded a silver award for Project Development at the 2021 National Awards for Innovation and Excellence in Public-Private Partnerships.

Presented by the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships, these awards showcase  how partners are continuing to adapt and refine the ‘made-in-Canada’ P3 model to create, deliver, operate and maintain innovative and transformative infrastructure for their communities.

Key factors considered in the Project Development Award category include initiatives undertaken to permit the project to succeed, community benefit considerations, farsightedness in development concepts, and consultations with community groups.

The NAMHAF was notable for the fact that it was one of the few P3s globally to be awarded during the height of the global pandemic. The project team was able to mitigate potential future challenges the pandemic may create through active dialogue with the Province during the bidding stage.

The project brings significant community benefits, for not only the immediate vicinity of St. John’s, but also the whole of Newfoundland and Labrador. The $330-million project will help transform and destigmatize mental health and addictions treatment in Newfoundland and Labrador, reflecting the move away from an inpatient-centered model to one that balances care and healing close to home.

The facility, which is replacing one constructed in the 1800’s, has been designed using Lean design principles, minimizing staff travel distances, optimizing energy efficiency through technical detailing, and delivering a complex set of programmatic requirements while keeping future flexibility in mind.

Over the course of construction, more than 400 jobs are expected to be created with about 200 personnel on site during peak construction.