WNIJ News Director Jenna Dooley spoke with Kevin Haas of the Rock River Current about the sale just announced by healthcare system Mercyhealth of its Javon Bea facility in Rockford to a local pastor. The following is a transcript of that conversation:
HOST: You're listening to WNIJ. I'm News Director Jenna Dooley. The pastor of a Rockford church has agreed to buy a former hospital from Mercyhealth. Pastor Melvin Brown and his wife, Sheila, of Kingdom Authority International Church have signed a purchase agreement and are now closing on the former hospital.
Kevin Haas is with the Rock River Current and has been covering this purchase.
ROCK RIVER CURRENT: Rockford pastor to take over Javon Bea Hospital-Rockton on west side
Kevin, it's not every day you hear about a hospital to church conversion. Can you catch us up on how it came to be?
HAAS: There's been a big question with Mercyhealth leaving the hospital portion of its property out there (they're still maintaining a presence in the physician clinic) on what would happen with that. Mercy says it offered it as a donation to the city. The city declined. Last week, a firestorm started as the mayor put out a statement saying he was concerned about the user who would be getting it. The mayor wasn't confirming who that was at the time. It was just confirmed this week that it was Melvin and Sheila Brown of Kingdom Authority International Church. They have not told us what they plan to do with the property yet. That's still the big question. I talked to Melvin briefly over the phone and he said he hoped to reveal a few more details perhaps next week, but we're still waiting to learn what exactly they plan to do with a real behemoth of a property here.
HOST: [Mayor Tom McNamara] has issued several statements now related to the sale, stating his concerns. What has he been saying publicly?
HAAS: He's tried to make it clear that he hopes for the best, but he doesn't believe in the Brown's ability to take on a project like this. Simply maintaining the heating, the electricity, [and] the costs of running the facility and keeping it on are about $1.5 million a year. So it takes a lot of financial backing to redevelop this or even put it into use. There's a county board member who called it a “predatory gift,” essentially saying it was being dumped on somebody who would eventually not be able to take care of it. So that's really where this controversy has swirled with this building being taken over by the church.
HOST: What is the hospital CEO saying to the mayor's comments?
HAAS: Last week, Javon Bea said that the city declined his offer to donate it to the city. He said it was a racially biased double-standard and harshly criticized the mayor for not wanting [Brown] to take it over.
HOST: What was the mayor's response to that?
HAAS: The mayor has essentially said that it does not have it have anything to do with race and that he has nothing against Melvin and Sheila Brown. [He says] it really is just a matter of if they can't handle the work on this, then it's going to be an issue for the city down the road to tear it down, or whatever the case may be if they're not capable of taking on a project of this magnitude.
HOST: Has Pastor Brown reacted to any of these comments?
HAAS: He's put out a few brief things on Facebook, just saying that, yes, he did take over the property. When I've talked to him by phone, he's been hesitant to say much. We hope to learn more from him in the future. People are eager to hear what he plans to do with the property and how he can accomplish it.
HOST: Is there anything else that's been unique to this transaction?
HAAS: I don't know that I've seen anything quite like this before with a facility of this size turned over to a church. We’re in uncharted territory to find out what may happen with this property in the future. It's going to be a lot of interest to hear the plans and to hear how those plans can be accomplished in the coming days and weeks.
HOST: Kevin Haas is with the Rock River Current. Kevin, thanks for joining us.