Plans to build a new Riverland Medical Center facility on U.S. 84 between Ferriday and Vidalia continue to move forward.

This week the hospital’s trustees voted to enter into negotiations to purchase a 20-acre piece of land as a site for a proposed new facility.

The land negotiation is a key step required to seek funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture necessary for the facility to be built.

If that money is approved, the Concordia Parish Police Jury must still approve the building plans.

A new hospital is still a long way from coming to fruition, but we hope as the plans come together, hospital trustees put good consideration into options for the hulk of a hospital building that will be left vacant should the hospital ultimately move.

All too often, governments and government entities become enamored by the shiny new building on an artist’s rendition, failing to consider what will be left behind.

Ferriday has enough problems without having another vacant building staring back at its residents.

Whether demolishing or repurposing the current hospital building is best will be difficult to determine at the moment, as too many variables exist.

However, we urge hospital leaders to keep the old hospital building’s future top of their minds as they work plans for the future building.