CMH receives grant to restore Hale Hospital
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WILMINGTON – CMH Regional Health System has received a $235,620 federal grant to begin the restoration of historic Hale Hospital, the 86-year-old, three-story edifice located in the middle of Clinton Memorial Hospital’s 20-acre campus.
The grant from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) will fund the stabilization of the abandoned structure over the next few months though additional monies will be needed to further ready the building for potential occupancy as non-clinical offices, potential meeting and wellness space and possibly even a health care-related museum.
“There has been an immense amount of work on this project behind the scenes in the last couple of years,” says Andy Riddell, president and chief executive officer of CMH Regional Health System. “We are excited about the prospect of resurrecting an historic local treasure while at the same time acquiring new space that we think will be critically needed by our hospital and health system in the future.”
Hale Hospital, built by Dr. Kelley Hale, opened in 1923 as Clinton County’s first hospital and remained open until 1964. A portion of the building later became offices for the Wilmington City School District who vacated the building in the 1980s. In 1994, it was gifted in a charitable trust to CMH by Dr. Kelley Hale’s son and daughter-in-law, the late Dr. Nathan Hale and Margery Hale.
The 15+ acres surrounding Hale Hospital, which was also part of the gift, allowed the expansion of Clinton Memorial Hospital and campus as part of a $50 million building and renovation project from 2000-05. Hale Hospital has sat empty for more than two decades and its condition has deteriorated significantly. The grant will fund a new roof, restoration of the terra cotta coping along the roof border, new windows and the addition of ceiling mounted heat. Construction will begin immediately, with completion of this phase scheduled for March 31, 2010.
The hospital has both medical and architectural significance. At the time of its opening, it earned recognition as one of the most modern small hospitals in America.
“We particularly appreciate the assistance of our congressman, Michael Turner, who made a visit to Hale Hospital in the winter of 2008 and encouraged us to pursue the funding,” Riddell says. “He was excited about the prospects and compared the project to a lot of renovation that occurred in downtown Dayton when he was mayor of that city.”
Turner says that Hale Hospital has been a fixture in Clinton County for the better part of a century and wants it to remain so.[[In-content Ad]]
The grant from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) will fund the stabilization of the abandoned structure over the next few months though additional monies will be needed to further ready the building for potential occupancy as non-clinical offices, potential meeting and wellness space and possibly even a health care-related museum.
“There has been an immense amount of work on this project behind the scenes in the last couple of years,” says Andy Riddell, president and chief executive officer of CMH Regional Health System. “We are excited about the prospect of resurrecting an historic local treasure while at the same time acquiring new space that we think will be critically needed by our hospital and health system in the future.”
Hale Hospital, built by Dr. Kelley Hale, opened in 1923 as Clinton County’s first hospital and remained open until 1964. A portion of the building later became offices for the Wilmington City School District who vacated the building in the 1980s. In 1994, it was gifted in a charitable trust to CMH by Dr. Kelley Hale’s son and daughter-in-law, the late Dr. Nathan Hale and Margery Hale.
The 15+ acres surrounding Hale Hospital, which was also part of the gift, allowed the expansion of Clinton Memorial Hospital and campus as part of a $50 million building and renovation project from 2000-05. Hale Hospital has sat empty for more than two decades and its condition has deteriorated significantly. The grant will fund a new roof, restoration of the terra cotta coping along the roof border, new windows and the addition of ceiling mounted heat. Construction will begin immediately, with completion of this phase scheduled for March 31, 2010.
The hospital has both medical and architectural significance. At the time of its opening, it earned recognition as one of the most modern small hospitals in America.
“We particularly appreciate the assistance of our congressman, Michael Turner, who made a visit to Hale Hospital in the winter of 2008 and encouraged us to pursue the funding,” Riddell says. “He was excited about the prospects and compared the project to a lot of renovation that occurred in downtown Dayton when he was mayor of that city.”
Turner says that Hale Hospital has been a fixture in Clinton County for the better part of a century and wants it to remain so.[[In-content Ad]]