Crews in final stages of removing former hospital
From Dunn Street looking southeast, the former Prairie du Chien Memorial Hospital structure continues to disappear, as about 10,000 square feet of the 95,000-square-foot former facility remains to be torn down, sorted and recycled. Still standing on Nov. 9 was part of the covered ER entrance. (Photos by Correne Martin)
Mounds of dirt and exposed infrastructure now sit in place of the old Prairie du Chien Memorial Hospital building, shown here from Taylor Street looking northwest. This was the side of the hospital where the sunroom previously stood.
As the final portions of Prairie du Chien’s former hospital building are removed, Crossing Rivers Health looks back with fondness at the legacy of service the building provided, and looks forward to new opportunities the property will offer to area communities.
An update on the project was provided Friday by hospital administration:
•10,000 square feet of the 95,000-square-foot former Prairie du Chien Memorial Hospital facility remains to be torn down, sorted and recycled.
•The extensive asbestos abatement project is complete. This abatement undertaking by Robinson Brothers utilized more than 30 workers for four weeks.
•According to Fred Runde, of Clayton County Recycling, more than 1,000 tons of metal were recovered through the sorting and recycling efforts.
•After the concrete is removed, the site will be seeded to await future possibilities.
•Opportunities for future use will continue to be explored, with no definite plans determined yet. Interest in the property from outside parties has been promising.
•Approximately 15 organizations, which include area schools, city governments and non-profit organizations, benefitted from the re-use of furniture, furnishings and equipment, at little-to-no cost.
According to administration, the old hospital building has been listed for sale since planning for the new facility began. Efforts were also made on behalf of hospital leadership to reach out to organizations they felt may have had an interest, ultimately resulting in little interest and no action.
Crossing Rivers Health Board and leadership did not want the former hospital building to become a blighted property in Prairie du Chien. The board determined the most prudent course of action was to raze the building, creating a clean slate upon which a plan can be developed for future use.
