By Emma Rausch
emma@thepaperofwabash.com
Lutheran Health Network broke ground at its new Wabash outpatient center Monday afternoon, May 22.
The 30,000-square-foot facility, which will be located at 1700 S. Alber St. in Wabash when completed, will house primary care physician practices, a physical therapy and rehabilitation area, an urgent care clinic, a full laboratory, diagnostic imaging suite, infusion therapy center and timeshare space for additional specialists.
The center will be a great addition to the city of Wabash and Wabash County, according to Mayor Scott Long.
“The ground breaking today at this new Lutheran Health Network facility is great for citizens of Wabash and great for the city of Wabash,” Long said. “This project is going to allow people to access to facilities where they can receive specialized care that they may otherwise have to travel to other cities for.”
City and county residents will now also have local healthcare options between Lutheran and Parkview Health, he continued.
“Just as I’ve said in the past, competition’s a good thing,” Long said. “Having multiple facilities in our community will afford our citizens a choice in healthcare providers, which will benefit everyone.
“I believe competition makes you step up your game so to speak,” he later continued and added, “It means the battle for the consumer dollar and increased services to meet customer demands, and healthcare providers do the same.”
The facility will also “strengthen” the city’s tax base, the mayor continued.
In April, the Wabash City Council approved two 10-year tax abatements for the Lutheran Health facility. Due to be completed by the end of the year, the project’s total investment is approximately $10 million including equipment, furnishings and a long-term lease, according to officials.
A total of 36 new jobs will also be created with 23 of those positions to be Lutheran employees.
“As mayor, I look forward to the new partnership with Lutheran in Wabash,” Long said. “I’m sure they will supportive of and partner with Wabash in many of the initiatives that the city undertakes. We’re a tightknit community that gets things done.
“We looked forward to working with Lutheran Health as a partner in creating a vision for Wabash that will make this the best community to live, work and play in.”
Lutheran Health Network’s officials are excited for the “great opportunity,” according to Scott Weiskittel, Lutheran Chief Operating Officer.
“Our goal is always to create greater accessibility so we can better serve those in communities that we provide services for,” Weiskittel told the audience at Monday’s groundbreaking.
Since November 2014, the company’s Lutheran Air II has flown out of Wabash Municipal Airport to assist area residents in need of critical care.
In additional to primary care and family medicine, the new outpatient center will offer laboratory, X-ray, CT, MRI, ultrasound and mammography services. The Orthopedic Hospital of Lutheran Network will also have a satellite office for physical therapy.
“We’re extremely excited about this new project,” Weiskittel said, and later added, “We’re just excited to partner with Wabash, not only in this situation but future opportunities.”