AURORA | Arapahoe County officials on Wednesday announced they will convert a massive event center in far east Aurora into a temporary convalescence site for people recovering from COVID-19.
Housed within the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds on East Quincy Avenue, the facility will provide non-critical medical care to COVID-19 patients in an effort to open up additional bed space at increasingly crowded local hospitals, officials said in a news release.
“Reducing patient loads on our hospitals means that those who need critical care can get it, and the temporary facility will provide observation and care for individuals recovering from the disease,” Arapahoe County Commissioner Nancy Sharpe said in a statement.
The operation will open with enough space for 54 people, though it may accommodate up to 150 patients if needed, according to county spokesman Luc Hatlestad.
Officials spent about $15,000 to equip the facility with cots and other equipment, according to Nate Fogg, the county’s emergency manager.
The center will not provide critical care, but will instead focus on housing recovering patients “who are ready to return to their original housing situation but are unable to do so because of their circumstances,” according to the news release.
Hospitals will refer patients to the site, which covers nearly 50,000 square feet, according to the event center’s website. Patients will not be able to walk in or admit themselves.
Paramedics and medical students will staff the temporary service center.
Several entities helped convert the site into a medical facility, including the Colorado National Guard and Aurora Warms the Night.
The center is prepared to start housing patients immediately, Arapahoe County Sheriff Tyler Brown said on a call with reporters.
Last week, Arapahoe County indefinitely extended its closure of all county buildings in an effort to further stem the spread of the viral infection.
The new recovery facility, the first of its kind in the state, is slated to operate as long as the county’s disaster declaration is in place. The local emergency order was first enacted about a month ago.