The vacant hospital has fallen into disrepair.
A Northside private school is breaking out the wrecking ball for an old hospital building as it looks to build up parts of its campus in the long term.
Veritas School is preparing to demolish the former Richmond Memorial Hospital at 1311 Palmyra Ave.
The building and its various annexes, which total about 106,000 square feet, will be razed to make way for green space, while the school finalizes a master plan for the overall campus that envisions several new buildings in the years to come.
Initially the predecessor to Bon Secours’ Memorial Regional Medical Center in Hanover, the Richmond Memorial Hospital building dates to the 1950s and was purchased by Veritas School for $1.45 million in 2016. Veritas Head of School Keith Nix said retrofitting the old hospital into something the school could use is cost-prohibitive.
Keith Nix
“If you go inside, it’s a bit scary actually,” Nix said. “It hasn’t been usable whatsoever since they shut it down (in the 1990s).”
The historic Laburnum House at 1300 Westwood Ave., which is connected to the old hospital building, will not be demolished.
Laburnum House was included in Veritas’ 2016 purchase. That building, constructed in the early 1900s as a mansion for local businessman Joseph Bryan and his family, still sports massive Corinthian columns with a brick façade and ornate moldings.
Veritas has used Laburnum House sparingly, primarily as an event and office space, but only in the spring and fall seasons because Nix said it doesn’t have operational heating and cooling systems. He said they’re planning a historic tax-credit renovation of Laburnum House.
“It’s largely been sitting (there) but the bones are great. It’s in really good shape, it just needs up-to-date systems,” Nix said.
The Laburnum House buildling, pictured left, will not be demolished, while the former hospital, pictured right, will be. (Mike Platania photo)
D.H. Griffin Companies is handling the demolition of the old hospital building, a process that is planned to begin in the coming weeks and continue through the summer.
Veritas School, a Christian, junior kindergarten-12 private school, owns about 18 acres in the area bound by Westwood Avenue, Brook Road, Palmyra Avenue and Gloucester Road.
It is working with Glavé & Holmes Architecture to update its 2018 master plan, which would be implemented over 10 to 20 years, Nix said.
The first phase would include an auditorium and gym. The exact location and budget for the first phase hasn’t been determined, but Nix said it’ll likely be north of $10 million.
Also on Veritas’ wish list are a student life center for its upper school (7th to 12th grade) that could host a dining hall and space for clubs and other extracurricular activities, along with a performing arts space and theater.
“Our arts program is strong and significant, and right now we’re able to make do by availing ourselves to other spaces in the city for performances and events,” Nix said. “But we’d love to have our own theater and performing arts space down the road.”
Nix said the school is also plotting to rezone the entirety of the campus. Veritas is aiming to finalize the plan and submit for rezoning sometime in the coming months.
Annual tuition at Veritas ranges from $14,560 to $16,120. Its current enrollment is 672, nearly double from what the school counted when it relocated from the Southside in 2013.
“This current year represented our first year to be at full enrollment. We’re at 672 this year and that’s where we expect to remain,” Nix said.
Another local faith-based private school has also been in campus expansion mode. Blessed Sacrament Huguenot School in Powhatan recently completed a five-year, multi-phase round of projects on its campus that totaled $14 million.
The vacant hospital has fallen into disrepair.
A Northside private school is breaking out the wrecking ball for an old hospital building as it looks to build up parts of its campus in the long term.
Veritas School is preparing to demolish the former Richmond Memorial Hospital at 1311 Palmyra Ave.
The building and its various annexes, which total about 106,000 square feet, will be razed to make way for green space, while the school finalizes a master plan for the overall campus that envisions several new buildings in the years to come.
Initially the predecessor to Bon Secours’ Memorial Regional Medical Center in Hanover, the Richmond Memorial Hospital building dates to the 1950s and was purchased by Veritas School for $1.45 million in 2016. Veritas Head of School Keith Nix said retrofitting the old hospital into something the school could use is cost-prohibitive.
Keith Nix
“If you go inside, it’s a bit scary actually,” Nix said. “It hasn’t been usable whatsoever since they shut it down (in the 1990s).”
The historic Laburnum House at 1300 Westwood Ave., which is connected to the old hospital building, will not be demolished.
Laburnum House was included in Veritas’ 2016 purchase. That building, constructed in the early 1900s as a mansion for local businessman Joseph Bryan and his family, still sports massive Corinthian columns with a brick façade and ornate moldings.
Veritas has used Laburnum House sparingly, primarily as an event and office space, but only in the spring and fall seasons because Nix said it doesn’t have operational heating and cooling systems. He said they’re planning a historic tax-credit renovation of Laburnum House.
“It’s largely been sitting (there) but the bones are great. It’s in really good shape, it just needs up-to-date systems,” Nix said.
The Laburnum House buildling, pictured left, will not be demolished, while the former hospital, pictured right, will be. (Mike Platania photo)
D.H. Griffin Companies is handling the demolition of the old hospital building, a process that is planned to begin in the coming weeks and continue through the summer.
Veritas School, a Christian, junior kindergarten-12 private school, owns about 18 acres in the area bound by Westwood Avenue, Brook Road, Palmyra Avenue and Gloucester Road.
It is working with Glavé & Holmes Architecture to update its 2018 master plan, which would be implemented over 10 to 20 years, Nix said.
The first phase would include an auditorium and gym. The exact location and budget for the first phase hasn’t been determined, but Nix said it’ll likely be north of $10 million.
Also on Veritas’ wish list are a student life center for its upper school (7th to 12th grade) that could host a dining hall and space for clubs and other extracurricular activities, along with a performing arts space and theater.
“Our arts program is strong and significant, and right now we’re able to make do by availing ourselves to other spaces in the city for performances and events,” Nix said. “But we’d love to have our own theater and performing arts space down the road.”
Nix said the school is also plotting to rezone the entirety of the campus. Veritas is aiming to finalize the plan and submit for rezoning sometime in the coming months.
Annual tuition at Veritas ranges from $14,560 to $16,120. Its current enrollment is 672, nearly double from what the school counted when it relocated from the Southside in 2013.
“This current year represented our first year to be at full enrollment. We’re at 672 this year and that’s where we expect to remain,” Nix said.
Another local faith-based private school has also been in campus expansion mode. Blessed Sacrament Huguenot School in Powhatan recently completed a five-year, multi-phase round of projects on its campus that totaled $14 million.
Where I was born completely gone! Oh, the humanity!
Just to clarify, the buildings slated for demolition are only part of the Richmond Memorial Hospital complex. The primary hospital building, which is the seven-story tower that now houses Ginter Place condos, was built in 1957 as the city’s official WWII memorial. Two other buildings, one constructed in 1961 and one in 1964, were added to the campus and it is (at least) one of these that is scheduled for removal.
Yup, the tower building and the house will remain. The buildings slated for demolition will not be missed from an architectural standpoint.
I was an Emergency Department nurse there for many. many years. It’s like the death of an old friend. It was a huge part of my life. Laburnum House is a spectacular building and I’m grateful it is to be spared. She is a grand lady, rumored to be haunted. I spent a great deal of time in that section of Memorial.
Certainties in life are death, taxes, and change. So be it. but memories of Memorial will always be in my heart.