Plans for redeveloping the site of one of the Utica area’s former hospitals have taken a big step forward.
Central New York Congressmember John Mannion, (D-22), said the federal government will provide a $2 million grant to support the next phase of redeveloping the site that was previously home to St. Luke’s Hospital in the town of New Hartford, near Utica.
“The county executive and this community got to work,” said Mannion. “A careful process ensued, lots of listening, planning and consensus building, and over time, they identified a future focused on housing, walkability, open space and economic opportunity.”
That 53-acre campus housed a large hospital complex, but the medical services there and at St. Elizabeth’s, another local hospital, were moved to the brand-new Wynn Hospital in Utica in the fall of 2023.
Eventually, the demolition cost for taking down the now-vacant hospitals is expected to total around $40 million. That’s according to Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente who said at a Monday news conference that there is a plan that’s been developed to look at the potential reuse for these two former hospital sites.
“Our master plan kind of outlines some things that we'd like to do here,” said Picente. “We'd like to get out into the field and have some developers take a look at what this is. So now the next step is having some further discussions on what we do next.”
Shawna Papale is President of Mohawk Valley EDGE, a regional economic development agency. She said building more housing is one possibility that officials and developers will look at.
“Housing is critical. But as you do that housing, you want to have different types,” Papale said. “But also you want retail functions. You want settings where people can congregate and come together. So yes, I think it can be a mixture.”
Officials say they will continue to seek additional funding for the needed demolition. They will also continue to gather community input. It’s expected the development of the site will take several years to complete.
