WLMH welcomes Grimsby council members to tour the almost-open facility in early October, 2025. The collection of photos below commemorates some of the key moments in our building journey.

October 16, 2025

Rebuilding WLMH: A timeline in photos

We’re on the doorstep of the grand opening for West Lincoln Memorial Hospital in Grimsby, scheduled for November 24. The legacy hospital was built in 1949, shortly after the Second World War, and has been a pillar of community life since then.

The old building served the community for nearly 80 years, witnessing generations of families, medical staff, and advances in health care. Modern health care has changed dramatically since 1949 — new technology, patient-centred design, and sustainability standards have all grown in leaps and bounds. The new space will reflect today’s standards and be a place of comfort, efficiency, and innovation that will serve the West Niagara region for decades to come.

Our new hospital building is filled with state-of-the-art facilities: a larger emergency department, upgraded surgical suites, digital imaging, and labour and delivery unit, to name a few.

Although it was a long road for the community, once shovels hit the ground, the facility was built at near record pace. Opening day will be a huge moment of pride and renewal for the community. This collection of photos commemorates some of the key moments in our building journey. Enjoy this peek behind the scenes.

West Lincoln Memorial hospital with the text "Front Entrance of old building. Built in 1949."

The well manicured green space out front of the old building on a dreary October day.

Large group of people outside West Lincoln Memorial Hospital, all wearing white hard hats and business attire. Text: WLMH Groundbreaking Ceremony, April 2022.

Community leaders, local and provincial politicians, as well as leadership team from Hamilton Health Sciences gathered for a ceremonial ground breaking.

Architectural rendering of future outdoor space at WLMH. Text: Green space and parking where old building currently sits. Projected for Fall/Winter 2026.

The current building will begin being decommissioned in February to make space for the parking lot. This will also allow for a tree-lined area for people to walk and sit.

Construction hoarding with a timeline. Text: Construction Fence Erected with historical timeline. November 2022.

In front of the current building, construction walls erected around the builder’s portable offices and construction site. Included was a timeline highlighting key historical events for the hospital.

A hospital room with a chair, and architectural paper on the walls showing where light switches and bathroom showers will go. Text: Mock up of patient room washroom. March, 2023.

We built full scale model mock-ups of the rooms in the basement of the shopping plaza next door. These were used for staff input, equipment placements, furnishing and finishing material selection. A great way for staff to imagine in 3D.

A hospital room with a chair, and architectural paper on the walls showing where light switches and clocks will go. Text: Model Room Mockups. March, 2023.

In the mock up rooms, some old furniture was used along with new, to have a true-to-life feeling of the layouts.

Construction site with large hole. Text: Ambulance Bay Future Location, April 2023.

The new ambulance bay will be a fully enclosed garage, with retractable doors on each side. This will provide the safest patient transfer possible.

Construction site with large cement pillars. Text: Southwestern Corner, April 2023.

Early stages of the main cement support structure.

Construction site with a group of people in hard hats and safety vests. Text: Community Leaders Tour, August 2023.

Community leaders came excited for a construction tour and were not disappointed. There were lots of great questions and lots to learn.

A woman wearing a winter coat uses a blue marker to sign a metal construction beam. Text: Commemorative Beam Signing, Dr. Joan Bellaire & WLMH staff, November 2023.

Staff signed a painted i-beam that will be used inside the building at the highest point.

A construction worker balances on the signed beam, up high in the framework of the new WLMH hospital. Text: Signed Beam Installation, December 2023.

The commemorative signed beam being installed.

Exterior shot of the mostly-built hospital with orange construction tarps protecting all the windows. Text: Aerial view facing north east, March 2024.

The full shape of the building is close to complete. Although the construction team was making great progress, there was still lots of work ahead.

A ladder stands in the shell of a hospital room. Text: Labour & Delivery Recovery Room, January 2025.

A look at some of the clinical spaces that are almost ready for equipment and furniture.

Indoor section of the new hospital under construction. Text: Diagnostic Services Registration Desks, January 2025.

Infrastructure was still exposed and not quite ready for the ceiling installation. But the registration desk is looking more like real desk space.

Drone shot of the new hospital showing completed roof with solar panels. Text: Aerial View Looking Northwest, April 2025.

Brick work and siding is almost complete.

Construction workers inside the new hospital with tables and pylons. Text: Main lobby and registration, May 2025.

Construction teams working on the finishing carpentry in the main lobby. This is looking towards the eventual main doors, once the old building is decommissioned.