The first phase of preparations for the demolition of the Audrain Medical Center is underway.

ARSI Inc., a registered asbestos abatement contractor based in Jefferson City, has been conducting environmental remediation at the Audrain Medical Complex, removing all of the hazardous materials, including light bulbs, ballasts, thermostats, chemicals and anything containing asbestos.

Project manager Bob Anderson said he and his team started at the Cornerstone building, which only took a day, and have now moved on to the Stribling building.

“When we came, it took us a while to get everything out of our way,” Anderson said, referencing the Stribling building.

As members of his team removed ceiling tiles to expose the asbestos, Anderson explained that in order to keep everyone safe during the removal process, they will need to place plastic walls throughout the facility and work on removal section by section.

But the biggest challenge will come when his team moves to the main hospital.

“This building has a lot more asbestos in it, as far as floor tile and pipes,” Anderson said. “It’ll be a lot of moving equipment just to get to what I need to do.”

The mudded fittings around pipes and 9-by-9 floor tiles that run throughout a large portion of the hospital contain asbestos, as well as the adhesive — all of which will have to be removed before demolition.

“I’ve got to get a lift and scrape all the caulk off the windows because the caulk has asbestos in it too,” Anderson added.

The hazardous materials and chemicals are currently being stored in the old ambulance bay at the hospital, and Anderson has been keeping meticulous records of everything they remove so it can be hauled off and disposed of at a later date.

City Manager Bruce Slagle said the city anticipates the abatement process will be complete in the first quarter and the demolition of Cornerstone and Stribbling will go to bid letting in the next 60 days.

“Removal of those structures, we are assuming, is in play for March,” he said. “We are trying to prepare the site so we are not going to be the holdup.”

Slagle also confirmed in an interview with the Ledger that Boone Health’s plans to establish a critical access hospital in Mexico are still alive.

“We’re wanting to make sure that we're moving and getting things done so when they're ready, we’re ready,” he said.

Boone Health CEO and President Brady Dubois last visited Mexico at a joint session of the Mexico City Council, Audrain County Commission and Audrain County Health Department Board of Health on Oct. 13.

There, he said he anticipated selecting a strategic partner in November 2025, with an announcement in December, but that did not happen.

“I understood, as far as strategic partners, they had more interest from more partners than they expected, and it has taken them longer than they expected to go through all of them,” Slagle said. “It’s still an active and ongoing process, and they have a lot of information to sort through in the first quarter.”

Environmental remediation remains on schedule, keeping demolition plans on track for spring 2026.