DUBOIS – After a unanimous vote by DuBois City Council, RHJ Medical Center will not be permitted to operate at 994 Beaver Drive.
The decision came at council’s regular meeting on Monday night, and after a public hearing that was held in April. At that meeting representatives from RHJ were given an opportunity to give council and the residents of DuBois area why they should be allowed to operate within 500-feet of a public park.
RHJ and the City of DuBois have been at odds over the 994 location since RHJ initially announced they were going to operate within 500-feet of Beaver Meadow Walkway. The facility was then closed due to an injunction, and later the city and RHJ came to an agreement that RHJ would remain closed until at least one public hearing was held and RHJ received an occupancy permit/certificate of use.
As part of that agreement RHJ stipulated that the walkway was indeed a park. They took a different stance at the public hearing.
“We were advised to sign it to stop the injunction,” said Kathy Jones, CEO of RHJ at the public hearing. “Do we believe it is a park? No we do not.”
“I would like to reiterate that we’ve always considered the walkway a park,” said John “Herm” Suplizio, mayor of the City of DuBois on Monday night. “Not that it may not be needed, but not at that location.”
It did not appear that anyone from RHJ was at the meeting to comment on the decision.