Coney Island Hospital To Reopen Ida G. Israel Health Center In Early Spring 2015

Coney Island Hospital (CIH) is all set to reopen its Ida G. Israel Community Health Center in Coney Island in this spring.

The building, pictured above, will be constructed at a new address located at 2925 West 19th Street. The original clinic – which provided crucial healthcare access to residents on the West End of Coney Island – was wiped out by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

“The community on the West End of Coney Island has been without healthcare service for two years, and CIH is excited to provide healthcare service in an area where it is needed most,” said Malorie Ginsberg, a spokesperson for CIH.

Prior to Sandy, the Ida G. Israel clinic provided health, dental, and drug rehabilitation services to approximately 40,000 patients per year, many of them on medicaid or uninsured. For the last two years, West End residents have been trekking to CIH, which is difficult to access by mass transit and is separated from the West End by the Belt Parkway and a large bus depot.

As we reported last year, CIH was initially searching for higher ground on which to rebuild the clinic, to ensure that it would not be destroyed by floodwaters again, but instead the hospital has opted to build the new clinic with a raised floor foundation.

“When deciding where to rebuild the new Ida G. Israel Community Health Center, CIH attempted to find a vacant 2nd floor of an existing building in the West End, but was unable to find a vacant 2nd floor location. The best option was to build a new structure above the 100-year flood plain,” said Ginsberg. “The new Ida G. Israel location is the closest location to the West End community that was available.”

But don’t expect to see any construction at the new address for several months. The modular structure is being built by contractors in Pennsylvania, and when it is complete, the building will be delivered in parts and reassembled at the site, Ginsberg told us. Currently, the exterior brick phase is 60 percent complete, the interior walls are completely framed out, and the mechanical and electrical work is well underway.