Stratford Times

Avon Crest demolition begins

"Last week marked the beginning of the end for the

Avon Crest building, as demolition procedures were initiated on the structure that housed Stratford’s first hospital.

After 60 years of providing care to area residents, Avon

Crest closed in 1950, coinciding with the opening of the

Stratford General Hospital located across the street. Avon

Crest then operated as a convalescent facility from 1955

to 1990. Outpatient services and administrative offices

resided in the building until 2018 when they were also

moved to Stratford General Hospital leaving the Avon

Crest building vacant.

Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance (HPHA) determined

that increasing maintenance costs associated with a

building constructed in 1889 made the continued operation of the building unaffordable.

A recent press release from HPHA stated, “The limited

funding the Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance receives is

directed to providing healthcare services and not restoration of vacant buildings.”

“HPHA envisions the Avon Crest site as a future

healthcare asset for the community and hopes to achieve

this by maintaining ownership of the land with future development by a third party. In February 2020 a Request

for Solutions was issued that aimed to identify qualified

groups interested in partnering with the HPHA to develop the property in a manner that would both respect "

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