Just eight months ago, the first bucket of earth was scooped from the site where the new Surgical and Critical Care Tower at WellSpan York Hospital will be constructed. In just a few short weeks, the site preparation and excavation phase of this expansive project will be complete – and right on schedule.

In total, over 125,000 tons, or 9,200 truckloads, of soil and rock were removed layer by layer, encompassing a total area of about 90,000 square feet

Hard to miss is the massive retaining wall along Irving Road that crews installed during the excavation phase, which spans over 575 feet or the length of almost two football fields.

Additionally, about 900 linear feet of storm and domestic water pipe was installed below grade that will service the future tower.

With excavation finished, the next stage of the project is laying the foundations. This phase has just kicked off and is scheduled to continue through the first quarter of 2025.

While the excavation phase was marked by the removal of tons of soil and rock, the foundations phase will involve the pouring of tons of concrete. In fact, over 6,000 cubic yards (12,000 tons) of concrete will form the foundations for the new tower, nearly enough to fill the entire Catherine Dale building!

Like every aspect of the construction project, the delivery and pouring of concrete for the foundations is meticulously planned. The most significant step will be laying down mat slabs, which are the thick slabs of concrete placed directly on the ground to support the tower and distribute its weight over the entire footprint of the ground beneath it. Given the size of the mat slabs, nine separate pours are scheduled, each of which will require 35 to 85 concrete trucks!

WellSpan Health is grateful for the continued support of our patients, visitors and neighbors during all the expansion projects occurring on campus. We also thank everyone on the project and construction teams who are making the vision for these projects a reality.