Over the course of half a year, the work of converting a vacant hospital into a Public Safety Complex has been slow and steady.
But if the work seems from afar to be painstakingly inching along, photos from the former St. Mary's Hospital campus show unmistakably dramatic progress. It's just been happening in slow motion, over a fairly long period of time.
Here are two interesting photos, one taken by an aerial drone and one taken from ground level, that demonstrate the extent of the demolition by contractor crews:
.jpg "Aerial view of Public Safety Complex (September 2020)")
.jpg "Ground-level photo, west side of site (September 2020)")
"The Public Safety Complex project is roughly one-quarter of the way along, with completion scheduled for early 2022," Community Empowerment Director Charles Lomax said. "We're on schedule, and it's becoming easier to see what the site will look like in another year and a half. It's exciting to see a rejuvenation and envision how this investment will benefit both City staff and the surrounding neighborhoods."
The Central Wing Annex, Professional Office Building and Women's Pavilion are being repurposed. The Police Department will be housed here, along with the Fire Department administration, Pension System and some E-911 operations. City Court will be housed in a new space to be constructed off of the Central Wing Annex and Professional Office Building.
Roughly half the vacated hospital campus is being razed. The outdated and unneeded buildings on the northern end of the North Knoxville site are coming down, making room for future private development. The iconic marble-accented 1929 Building is being preserved and will anchor the north side.
Lincoln Memorial University is converting the Magdalen Clarke Tower into classrooms.
Environmental Abatement Inc. is continuing demolition inside the third floor of the Women's Pavilion and hauling off debris from the second floor. Renascent is demolishing the Annunciation Wing, the West Wing and the Marion Wing. NEO Corp. is moving onto McCauley Hall abatement.