Fort Madison To Improve Hospital Entrance

Fort Madison, IA – Entering and exiting Fort Madison Community Hospital could soon become much safer. City Manager Larry Dinwiddie says several accidents, including one fatality, have taken place at the entrance to FMCH in recent years. The current layout requires drivers to cross 2 lanes of Highway 61 to enter the facility from the south or exit it and travel north. To address the safety concerns, Dinwiddie says the hospital entrance will be moved so it is directly across from Ortho Road. He says a frontage road will be built and a new traffic signal will be added. Dinwiddie says the current entrance would be blocked off. The price tag for the project will be more than $800,000. Dinwiddie says the city will contribute about $75,000; the hospital will spend $45,000; and state and federal grant dollars will cover the rest of the bill. He says some construction could get underway in a few weeks, but the bulk of the project will be completed this spring.