Demolition underway at downtown hospital site
Center City Association
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Tony Smith's crews knocked down 13 houses Monday. Just 152 left to go.
Smith, owner of Tony Smith Roll-Off and Demolition Service of Springfield, said that after years of anticipation, it won't take long to clear the future site of the Springfield Regional Medical Center.
"These houses are all old; the wood frames are rotten; it's not hard at all," he said Tuesday morning while overseeing the clearing of debris at one West North Street demolition site. "I could have all these houses down in 30 days, but not all of them are released (for demolition) yet."
Work started Monday on a demolition period is expected to take 90 to 120 days. Most of that time will be spent clearing debris and preparing the 45-acre site along Buck Creek on the west side of downtown.
The city began buying up the houses and other properties in the area in 2005, following the merger of Mercy Medical Center and Community Hospital the year before. The new entity -- Community Mercy Health Partners -- will operate a new hospital and medical arts campus on the downtown site.
After federal environmental and historical reviews of the plan were completed, demolition formally began on a rainy Friday, April 4. After a brief ceremony, George Miller, regional president and chief executive officer of Community Mercy Health Partners, and local elected officials took turns smashing down the old Citgo station at 330 W. North St. with an excavator.
Randy Himes of Steven R. Rausch Excavation and Demolition was at the site Tuesday morning, waiting six truckloads of fill dirt to level the site. He said he expected to be finished by the end of the day and move on to another job site on Innisfallen Avenue on Wednesday.
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