Government buys the Military Hospital

THE Balearic government has authorised the purchase of the two buildings which form part of the Military Hospital in Palma for 7.2 million euros. One will be used as the first public centre for Alzheimers' sufferers and the other as a geriatric home. Government spokesman Joan Flaquer said yesterday that this was the result of an agreement signed last December with the Defence Ministry, which owns the two buildings. The 7.2 million euros will be paid over a period of five years, Flaquer announced.
The Military Hospital is on the corner of Calle Olmos and San Miguel. One of the buildings, in Calle San Miguel, has seven storeys, and a basement, and the other, in Calle Olmos, has four storeys, a semi-basement and basement. The Balearic government has also agreed to keep on staff, for which it will receive central government funding.
The Calle Olmos building will be converted into a residence for people with Alzheimers, the first of its kind run by the health service in the Balearics. The Calle San Miguel building will be converted into a home for 72 pensioners who need constant attention for their daily needs.
Flaquer said that 15 percent of the places in this home will be reserved for Balearic members of the armed forces who have no such facility at their disposal. The Defence Ministry reduced the price by 1.5 million euros because of this concession.
The negotiations took a long time to bear fruit, but the wait has been worth it, as Flaquer described the agreement as “very important.” He went on to explain that it meant the Balearics have recovered two historical buildings and residents will benefit from new health resources.
Other decisions approved by the government at the same meeting included the expropriation of land needed for the Inca-Sa Pobla motorway in Majorca and the construction of a roundabout in Sant Antoni de Portmany in Ibiza.