By Randy Garrison

It was a great day for the City of Hartselle this past Tuesday afternoon. Ground breaking was held for Cullman Regional’s new Hartselle Health Facility. 

This project has been in the works and planning for more than two years and is now becoming a reality. 

This new facility had its beginnings in a phone call a couple of years ago from the director of marketing at Cullman Regional. We had worked together in my days at the newspaper, so we knew each other pretty well. She mentioned Cullman Regional was looking for space for specialty physicians to locate in Hartselle, and we set a time to ride the perimeter of Hartselle looking for space that might be available for this new type of operation. 

We spent several hours touring Hartselle, and then, with the help of others at city hall, I provided information needed as far as square footage, signage, etc. 

Just a short time later, the need for office space changed to a need for available land on which to construct a new facility. CRM was looking for three to five acres, preferably on Highway 31. We again toured Hartselle looking for available property. Again, information was shared about zoning and building requirements for a new facility. 

One potential property was not on the market at the time we began the search but could possibly be in the future. When the family decided to sell, Cullman Regional purchased the property at the intersection of Rhodes Street and Highway 31.  

After plans were designed and approval from the Alabama Department of Transportation was finally obtained, the facility was moving closer to becoming reality. 

The approximately 18,000–square–foot facility will allow patients in Hartselle and surrounding areas to have better access to healthcare services closer to home. 

After–hours healthcare, as well as specialty physicians, will be available for the community in this new state–of–the–art facility. 

Imaging services not available locally to Hartselle will also be accessible. 

The facility will also add 25 new jobs when at full capacity. 

Accessible healthcare is crucial to most citizens in our city and other communities, and this will be a great improvement for many of the residents, especially those who will now not have to leave Hartselle for certain medical services and care.  

It’s great for our city to have these types of services, many of which have not been available locally since Capella closed Hartselle Medical Center in 2012.  

This new facility is also a great tool for economic growth for our area, since it is important for businesses and industry looking to locate here 

All of the CRMC folks have been great to work with, and all here in Hartselle look forward to seeing this facility completed and in operation. The fall of 2021 will be a great time for another celebration when this facility is completed and operational. 

Thanks to the Board of Directors and management of Cullman Regional for having the vision and desire to offer better access to healthcare for all of the citizens of Hartselle and surrounding towns and communities. Your desire to improve healthcare for our city and to increase the footprint of CRMC into Morgan County will be a win-win for Hartselle and CRMC. 

On behalf of the City of Hartselle, let’s welcome Cullman Regional to Hartselle. We are happy to have you on board and look forward to a great relationship with all associated with Hartselle Health Center and CRMC.