Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend - Press Kit

1996 - PeaceHealth Oregon Region Governing Board begins to study the need to build a new hospital
December 2000 - Rebuilding a new hospital on the existing campus is deemed prohibitively expensive and operationally unworkable
Late 2000 & early 2001 – Sacred Heart experiences unprecedented patient volumes, making the need for a new facility more urgent
January-August 2001 – Sacred Heart begins to look at alternative sites for a brand new hospital, including land the hospital owned in Eugene (near Crescent Ave. and Coburg Rd.). By August, land use zoning issues prevent Sacred Heart from building on the Eugene site.
Sept. 7, 2001 – RiverBend emerges as the top choice; Sacred Heart announces an agreement to purchase the site
December 31, 2001 - The purchase of the 161 acre property is finalized
Early 2002 – Functional planning teams begin to meet to design of the new hospital
September 2004 – PeaceHealth buys vacant Sony compact disc manufacturing plant in the RiverBend area to house Oregon Medical Labs, a compounding pharmacy, and central materials supply. The purchase also includes nearly 20 acres of vacant land near the hospital site.
April 2005 - The City of Springfield approves plans for the new hospital. Some initial ground work begins at the site
June 2, 2005 - The site is officially dedicated
July 5, 2005 - Construction officially begins
March 2008 – Substantial completion of construction is complete; Sacred Heart takes control of site and starts onsite staff training
August 2008 Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend opens to the public