The countdown has been reduced from years to months. Progress continues on construction of the new Wynn Hospital in downtown Utica and remains on track to open in October of this year.

When it does, a heavily coordinated plan will be executed to relocate patients from the Mohawk Valley Health System's (MVHS) St. Elizabeth and St. Luke's campuses to the new state-of-the-art facility, says Bob Scholefield, the hospital system's executive vice president of facilities and real estate.

Wynn Hospital rendering via MVHS
Wynn Hospital rendering via MVHS
loading...

"There is a company that we've hired called Health Care Relocations, they are a worldwide firm and their sole role is to help relocate equipment, supplies, and build the plan for removing patients from the two campuses and bringing them to the Wynn Hospital," Scholefield said.

"It will be a one-day event, and it was be an extraordinarily well orchestrated process where patients are arriving from the two facilities all day, about six to eight at a time. We need to make sure we have the right mix of staff at all locations. Over the course of 12-15 hours, that [patient moving] process will occur."

The exact date of the move is to be determined and won't come for several more months.

The plan calls for 'significant public communication' in advance to ensure the community is aware of the plan, Scholefield said. That includes coordination with first responders and ambulance companies to avoid a situation where a patient is transported to an emergency room at a closed hospital, he said.

Parking garage adjacent to Wynn Hospital - rendering via Oneida County
Parking garage adjacent to Wynn Hospital - rendering via Oneida County
loading...

While speaking with WIBX 950, Scholefield also noted this winter's mild start has allowed work to continue on constructing the adjacent parking garage.

"Knock-on-wood, we've had really good weather for construction so far this winter so the parking garage has made tremendous progress so we hope we can make-up some time and that gap will be a little shorter that originally anticipated."

Parking garage adjacent to Wynn Hospital - rendering via Oneida County
Parking garage adjacent to Wynn Hospital - rendering via Oneida County
loading...

That 'gap' is a roughly six-month period between the Wynn's opening date and that of the parking garage, currently projected for March of 2024. A legal fight regarding the taking of surrounding properties via eminent domain caused a delay to the start of the parking facility's construction, officials have said.

You Can Escape And Spend The Night In This Classic Upstate New York Lighthouse

This Epic New York Airbnb Is Perfectly Sized For You & Your Friends

You and your friends can make allllll the memories during a weekend getaway to this Airbnb located in Cold Spring, New York. Put all your funds together and you can definitely afford it at a whopping $765 per night.

This New York Airbnb Features a Massive Indoor Pool for Guests

You don't find a lot of places that have access to an indoor pool, but this Airbnb crosses off that requirement you may have. This year round indoor pool house is 2000 square feet located in the lower Adirondacks of New York. Check it out below.

More From WIBX 950