What took more than 130 years to construct now is vanishing from land where lives were saved, babies were born, and goodbyes were given. And it’s emotional, especially for the 900 employees who lost their jobs and the thousands who cared for a community like it was their family.
Because it was a family thing.
Over the past two weeks, the structures that housed Northwood Health and the Hillcrest Behavioral Center have been mostly erased, and crews with F.R. Beinke Wrecking have started chipping away at the nursing residence buildings.
“I have heard so many stories from people who worked there for a lot of years, so I’m sure this is painful for them,” said Ward 2 Councilman Ben Seidler. “It’s going to take a while so it’s a process we’ll be watching because of what OVMC meant to this city and this valley. It’s been an institution for a very long time so seeing the property transform into a place where lives will be saved again hopefully makes it a little better for folks.
“When council voted to acquire the campus, no one knew what the future was,” he said. “And there was some interest in parts of some of the buildings, but not enough to make anyone think there was a future there. That’s why I believe the partnership with WVU Medicine is the best-case scenario.”
WVU Health Systems and the City of Wheeling are paying for the $7 million demolition of five large structures with nearly 800,000 square feet inside. Once the nursing residences are razed, the South and East buildings, the Education and Administration Building, and the West Tower will remain. The West Tower, according to Wheeling City Manager Bob Herron, will be the final building to be demolished.
WVU-HS has plans to construct a regional cancer treatment and research center on the property once the demolition and excavation processes are completed later this year. The facility is expected to be between 75,000-90,000 square feet and employee as many as 150 staff members.
“It’s been great working with the people with WVU-HS,” Herron said. “They know exactly what they want to do with the property and we are moving very quickly in that direction. With that said, the demolition process is going to take time because of the size of this project. It’s the biggest demolition that’s taken place since I came to Wheeling more than 20 years ago, and it may be the biggest in the city’s history.
“It’s been almost four years since the previous council made the decision to acquire the campus, and since we’ve renovated the former Professional Building into our new police headquarters, and we marketed the building on the campus for a couple of years before we entered into the agreement with WVU-HS,” he said. “I really feel this agreement with WVU was the best option that was presented to the city.”
