The Menominee Indian Tribe is considering acquiring the old Shawano Medical Center with an eye on converting the former hospital into apartments, classrooms or some other use.
The tribe announced its interest in the former hospital via social media Wednesday and said it was conducting a survey to gauge public support for the purchase as well as solicit input on possible uses for the property.
In a statement attributed to Tribal Administrator Jonathan Wilber and posted on the Facebook social media site, the tribe said it could acquire the hospital and surrounding acreage for less than $500,000.
“Price negotiations are in process as a first step,” Wilber said.
The Shawano Common Council has called a special meeting for 2 p.m. Thursday to discuss negotiations involving the 155,000-square-foot former hospital property.
However, City Administrator Brian Knapp said he isn’t expecting any final decision to be reached or any public announcement to be made as a result of the meeting.
Knapp said the tribe has been exploring making use of the former hospital property for about two months, as have other parties.
“We’re continuing to talk to them and continuing to talk to others,” Knapp said. “We’re aware of a couple of other parties interested in pursuing it as well.”
Located at 309 N. Bartlett St., the former hospital has been vacant since mid-September when ThedaCare health system opened its new ThedaCare Medical Center-Shawano across town.
Appleton-based ThedaCare has indicated recently that the property was still being marketed, but there have been no hints about potential buyers.
ThedaCare spokeswoman Megan Mulholland would not comment directly Wednesday on the Menominee tribe’s announcement.
“ThedaCare and the city are always looking at creative options for use of the former Shawano Medical Center,” Mulholland said in a statement. “Nothing has been decided yet, and we will share any news together when we do.”
The city owns a roughly 3.5-acre parcel of the property that was home to the original Shawano Medical Center in 1931 and was leased from the city. Shawano Medical Center purchased additional land for expansion over the years, and the hospital campus now occupies about 10 acres overlooking the Wolf River near downtown Shawano.
A citizens group led by Todd Dobberstein is proposing that the former hospital be converted into a multi-use community center.
An ad hoc task force that studied future possible uses for the property two years ago recommended options that included a waterfront supper club and lodge and a mix of condominiums and town homes, along with additional green space and a park shelter, and two single-family residential lots.
Last year, a proposal to turn the former hospital into a medical residency training center fell through after objections from ThedaCare.
In its social media announcement, the Menominee tribe said tribal leaders have authorized negotiations to “explore this opportunity and provide them with information on potential uses for the facility.”
The survey lists more than a dozen options for reusing the property, including day care/early childhood center, leases for commercial space, assisted living facility, college classrooms or student housing, and meal preparation for tribal programs.
The tribe said it also might have the option of acquiring five nearby homes owned by ThedaCare in a separate transaction.
Wilber’s statement indicated that tribal leaders hope to create focus groups to further evaluate ideas for the hospital property.
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