Work starts for new health clinic in Cuba City

CUBA CITY, Wis. — As a Platteville hospital wraps up construction on an expansion of its primary care clinic in a few weeks, construction crews will begin work on another project.

The new Cuba City Clinic, which could open as soon as November, marks the latest investment in Southwest Health’s facilities.

“It is important for our organization to continue to grow,” Southwest Health CEO Dan Rohrbach said at a ground breaking ceremony Wednesday. “You have to continue to upgrade your facilities. … This really does provide access to a building that will be around for the next 40 or 50 years.”

The $2.1 million facility will replace Southwest Health’s current location at Epione Pavilion, where staff members have provided primary care since the 1950s.

Crews in June will start work on the new clinic, which will span 8,500 square feet and offer primary care and rehabilitation services, including physical, occupation and speech therapy.

It will be located about a quarter of a mile south of the Cuba City limits on Wisconsin 80 on 2 acres of cropland donated by Lou and Sherri Schweigert. Lou serves on the Southwest Health Board of Directors.

Southwest Health has experienced an increase in service demand in recent years and has expanded its workforce and physical plant accordingly.

In 2005, a new hospital campus was unveiled in its current location on Eastside Road in Platteville. A 20,000-square-foot expansion was added in 2014 to create room for a women’s center and the Orthopedic Institute, and the surgical department was renovated in 2018.

Southwest Health has nearly completed construction of its 26,000-square-foot, $8.5 million Platteville clinic expansion and will move into the space in June.

Rohrbach said he anticipates the new Cuba City facility will serve patients from Benton, Dickeyville, Hazel Green, Kieler and Shullsburg.

Market and Johnson and River Valley Architects, both of Eau Claire, Wis., are serving as the general contractor and architect, respectively.

The flat ground at the site is a “builder’s dream,” said Kevin Renley, chief operating officer of Market and Johnson.

He said the greatest challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic will be securing supplies as supply chains face delays.

“I think we’re going to have some rough months this summer in terms of getting materials, but I think, eventually, it will clear its way out,” Renley said.

Rohrbach said the existing Epione clinic could be repurposed for office space, but no decisions have been made.

Four lead practitioners will be employed at the clinic.

“We are very excited to get started,” Dr. Zach Droeszler said in an email. “The best part is the ability to continue to grow with these communities with the additional clinical space, not to mention the expanded therapy space, which will be incredible.”