Cancer center is eyeing Delaware

Following years of uncertainty over plans to expand into nearby Burholme Park, Fox Chase Cancer Center announced yesterday that it is exploring opening a second campus in Delaware.

After a board meeting last night, the health-care center said that although it remained committed to finishing 19 building projects under way at its Northeast Philadelphia campus, including outpatient facilities, a urology suite, and a clinical research pavilion, it is prepared to look elsewhere to grow.

Fox Chase, which in March got a nod from City Council that would allow a multimillion-dollar expansion, has been challenged by residents who say they don't want to lose any of their park's acreage.

They have filed suit in Orphans Court contending that the expansion would violate the will of Robert Waln Ryerss, whose bequest of the property in 1895 made the park possible. Fox Chase's plan would take up nearly one-third of the 69-acre park.

Trial is scheduled to begin in August before Judge John Herron, according to Samuel Stretton, the attorney representing the residents.

"Now, it's interesting that instead of looking for other land in Philly or close by, they're going down to the state of Delaware, which should be a substantial distance from Burholme Park," Stretton said last night. "We had suggested over the years, hey, there are other locations" in the city.

The suit will continue, he added.

Councilman Brian J. O'Neill, whose district includes Fox Chase, said last night he supported the center's possibly looking to expand in another state.

"Having a second campus in a place that I'm assuming doesn't have a level of service to their citizens that Fox Chase offers in Philadelphia," he said, "is good for the state of Delaware, and it's good for the Fox Chase Center."

In a telephone interview last night following the board meeting, Michael V. Seiden, Fox Chase president and chief executive officer, indicated that what the medical facility ended up doing would hinge on what Orphans Court decided.

"Obviously, to do this responsibly, we are of course interested in knowing how the Orphans Court process works out so that we might have the option to expand in Burholme Park," Seiden said.

Pressed for specifics on what it would take to make a decision, Seiden said it was "premature" to discuss anything pending the court's decision. He also declined to speak about the particulars, including cost, scope and timetable.

Why expand in Delaware?

Seiden said Fox Chase had been approached by officials of that state.

Seiden said the center was working on a 25-year expansion plan that would likely cost $1 billion to $2 billion.