January 16, 2006 | More News

Warren Memorial Hospital Breaks Ground

The temperature may have been teetering around the freezing mark with a stiff wind that made it difficult to stand in one place for long, but that wasn’t enough to dampen the enthusiasm and excitement surrounding Warren Memorial Hospital’s new ambulatory care center. Construction of the 37,000 square-foot facility officially got underway earlier this month after hospital staff and board members, along with town and county officials and representatives from Lantz Construction Company, braved the winter weather at a groundbreaking ceremony.   

“It’s been said that we often take for granted those people who most deserve our gratitude,” Front Royal Mayor Jim Eastham noted during the brief ceremony, “and I can’t think of any institution more deserving of our gratitude than our hospital and its staff. On behalf of the Town of Front Royal, I would like to offer our congratulations to Warren Memorial Hospital and Valley Health on this new venture… and thank them for this major investment in our town.”

WMH President Patrick Nolan explained that planning for the project actually began back in 2004 as a way to decompress some of the overcrowding taking place at the hospital and to ease parking congestion. The new center is being constructed at the corner of Commerce Avenue and Laura Virginia Hale Way, conveniently located just one block away from the historic downtown area.

Once completed, the two-story building will be home to Warren’s Occupational Health, Physical Therapy, and Occupational Therapy departments. “The new facility will provide these programs with much-needed room to expand their services and provide better and more efficient care,” Mr. Nolan said. “Our location downtown will be more accessible to the community and will go a long way towards easing parking and traffic flow at our hospital campus.” The second floor will be used for physician offices.

“We commend Valley Health for its confidence and for continuing to invest in the future of our community,” added Richard Traczyk, Chairman of the Warren County Board of Supervisors.

The project is slated to be completed by the winter of 2008.