Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Palmdale Hospital Will Be Sold to Pasadena-Based Company

PALMDALE — Representatives of the Palmdale Hospital Medical Center said Wednesday that they have agreed to sell the financially ailing hospital to the Pasadena-based Paracelsus Healthcare Corp., owners of the 132-bed Lancaster Community Hospital.

The Palmdale hospital is one of three hospitals owned by Orange County-based Affiliated Medical Enterprises, which filed for bankruptcy in January, 1991.

Michael Nutter, an associate with Alvarez & Marsal, the New York-based company appointed to liquidate AME’s assets, would not reveal the exact sale price of the hospital but said it would probably be more than $10 million.

Nutter said he expects that U. S. Bankruptcy Court will approve the sale within 30 days and that Paracelsus will take possession in 41 days.

“They have indicated they would like to close the deal quickly,” Nutter said. “I don’t expect any problems whatsoever.”

The hospital, which is located at 1212 East Ave. S., continues to operate.

The 59-bed, 31,000-square-foot Palmdale hospital was built between 1965 and 1970. The facility also includes a 64-bed, 27,000-square-foot mental health clinic built in 1968 and two office buildings, Nutter said.

The sale also includes a vacant 23-acre site on Avenue P, where the city had previously approved plans for construction of a new hospital.

Hal Buck, chief operating officer of Paracelsus, said the firm’s immediate plans are to operate the hospital on a “business as usual basis,” while considering whether to build new facilities or consolidate services with its Lancaster hospital.