News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Celina Mayor Joey Rich hopes to have a quick turnaround in finding a potential buyer for Cumberland River Hospital (CRH).
Rich and other Clay County residents attended Cookeville Regional Medical Center’s (CRMC) special-called Board of Trustees meeting Wednesday regarding the closure of CRH.
“We were just asking some of the board members about the licensure with the hospital, if they were going to keep that or not and as of right now they still have it,” Rich said. “They don’t plan on letting that go anytime soon, so that gave us quite a bit of hope.”
Rich said he has spoken with potential buyers and even state lawmakers regarding the future of the Celina facility.
“We’ve spoken with our representatives and senators and we have talked to a few potential buyers with the hospital, just trying to… see what we can do to help them,” Rich said. “We’ve talked to a few that have seemed like they have the potential to buy it, but [they] couldn’t work an agreement out with Cookeville.”
The property where CRH sits is owned by the City of Cookeville and requires their City Council to surplus the land before bidding it out.
Clay County resident Trudy Weber addressed the Board during the meeting and asked for their support during this time.
“We don’t wish for this type of facility [like CRMC]. We were happy with what we had,” Weber said. “We know, [CEO Paul Korth] this was not in your hands. it’s just a fact of the economy and politics right now. But we want, very much, to have your support.”
CRMC’s Board of Trustees voted to liquidate all assets associated with the Celina facility during the meeting. The Board also voted to recommend the City of Cookeville begin the process of surplussing the property.
