Tonn and Blank construction workers place the final beam in place at the new Franciscan Health Crown Point hospital, being built at Interstate 65 and U.S. 231 (Photo provided)
A crane lifts the final beam into place at the construction site of the new Franciscan Health Crown Point hospital (Photo provided)
Father Tony Janik, OFM, director of spiritual care at Franciscan Health Crown Point, blesses the final beam of the new Franciscan Health Crown Point hospital with holy water (Photo provided)
In Crown Point, a “topping off” ceremony for Franciscan Health’s new hospital at I-65 and U.S. 231 was held this week. A news release says a crane hoisted the yellow beam skyward, marking a construction milestone and celebrating the last of the structural steel that will shape the $200 million hospital set to open in 2024. The beam was transported from the current hospital in Crown Point, where staff were able to sign it. Sister Ann Kathleen Magiera, vice president, mission integration for Franciscan Health Crown Point, Dyer, Hammond and Munster, said two blessed holy medals were attached to the beam. One is of St. Joseph the patron of workers, the other of foundress Blessed Maria Theresia Bonzel. Father Tony Janik, director of spiritual care at Franciscan Health Crown Point, blessed the beam with holy water, saying, “As we raise this beam, we know that we are dedicating ourselves again to commitment to continuing Christ’s ministry in our Franciscan tradition.”
“As I said at the groundbreaking, this isn’t about a building, it’s about beginning a new age for healthcare in Northwest Indiana. This building reaffirms the commitment the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration have made to our communities since arriving in Lafayette from Germany in 1875,” said Daniel McCormick, MD, president and CEO of Franciscan Health Crown Point.
Crown Point Mayor David Uran said Franciscan Health has been the largest employer in the city for decades, adding that the opportunities for other physicians and ancillary medical facilities in Crown Point will “make this the best location for medical services, not only in Northwest Indiana, but also the Chicagoland area.”
Jon Gilmore, president and CEO of Tonn and Blank Construction, said, “It has been 479 days since we started to move dirt out here. Although we still have a long way to go, we have made great progress.” Gilmore said Tonn and Blank workers had already moved more than 9.5 million cubic feet of soil, poured 1,500 truckloads of concrete and erected more than 10 million pounds of steel. The process includes unique offsite construction, where exam rooms, bathrooms and electrical distribution rooms will be built and fully finished at Tonn and Blank’s offsite facility, then delivered to the worksite. “Thanks to our highly skilled workforce, coupled with the latest in virtual construction technology, we are able to do things on this project like this that were never possible in the past,” Gilmore said.
Here is a link to the view the topping off ceremony.
