Wrecking equipment will soon be knocking down the walls at the old St. Francis Medical Center site on Oak Street in Breckenridge Minnesota, taking down the old nursing home and - if nobody comes forward with an alternative use for it - the hospital as well.

Work on removing the asbestos at the nursing home is currently ongoing, said St. Francis President and CEO David Nelson. This work is being done by Comstock Construction of Wahpeton, which won the bid for the demolition that will cost between $750,000 and $1 million.

After the asbestos is removed at the former nursing home, he said the contractor will remove asbestos at the hospital. Then the care center will be taken down within weeks. He didn't have exact dates, but said the goal is to have it done by Thanksgiving. The contractor of the memory care center that will build a cottage on the site wants “to get in there before it freezes,” Nelson said.

Demolition of the hospital is not set yet, but it will be some time after the beginning of the year. Nelson said there is still a chance that structure may be saved from the wrecking ball, if a person or a group of people come forward with a plan and the cash for another use of the building.