CUMBERLAND — The vacant Memorial Hospital property will be put to use early next year by development company Ridgecrest Investments Inc. of Frederick according to a property management agreement authorized at Tuesday’s Mayor and City Council public meeting.

Under the agreement, Ridgecrest will lease the property for 10 years, with the lease period ending April 30, 2020. The lease will automatically renew for another 10 years at the end of this period unless Ridgecrest gives the city written notice at least 90 days prior to the ending of the agreement that it doesn't want to continue the lease. Ridgecrest will be able to purchase the property at any time during the lease for $7 million.

The agreement requires that Ridgecrest make progress in developing the property. The developer leases 10 percent of the property each year for 10 years. If at any point the company is unable to continue leasing that property, the city will be able to take it back and find a new lessor or buyer if the property hasn't already been purchased. The agreement also authorizes the city administrator to approve leases and tenant improvements in excess of $5,000.

“We started this entire process in September 2004 when the city was first approached by the (Western Maryland) health system regarding plans to consolidate the two hospitals into one facility,” said City Administrator Jeff Repp at the Nov. 10 public meeting.

John Laughlin, principal owner of Ridgecrest Investments, was present at Tuesday’s meeting. “It's been an interesting journey to get here, and we're very happy that we're reaching the end of this,” said Laughlin. “All of us at my company are very excited about Memorial Hospital. We think it's a great opportunity and we look forward to filling it with a variety of tenants, both medical and nonmedical, and to bringing it back onto the tax rolls.”

Ridgecrest plans to develop the property into a multiuse facility that could serve a wide variety of tenants. An agreement between the city and Western Maryland Health System prohibits the hospital building from being used as another hospital, ambulatory care or surgical center or for other uses that would compete with WMHS services.

The Western Maryland Health System is still looking for tenants for the Braddock campus. Kathy Rogers, WMHS director of communications, has said previously while there were approximately eight developers interested in the campus when it was first announced that a new hospital building was planned, no one has stepped forward to develop the campus.

Contact Cory Galliher at cgalliher@times-news.com.