Officials and contractors kicked off construction on the Donna M. Christian Christensen MD Health Center with a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday morning on St. Croix.
The new public health center is being built on the site of the former Charles Harwood Memorial Complex, which was heavily damaged during hurricanes Irma and Maria and demolished in phases during 2023 and 2024.
“For nearly three quarters of a century, the site has been a symbol of service, care and community,” V.I. Health Commissioner Justa Encarnacion said Tuesday. “For countless families on St. Croix, this was a place where a child entered the world, where a parent received comfort, where a loved one found help and, eventually, where public health made its presence felt in every life.”
The rebuild is being headed by a joint venture of contractors J. Benton Construction and Consigli Construction. During Tuesday’s ceremony, James Benton said the 117,000 square-foot facility “will equip residents, families and health care providers with the modern, state-of-the-art health care resources that our island so desperately needs.” Steve Jackson, principal of Flad Architects, said the inspiration for the facility’s design was “grounded in the culture, history and spirit of the island.”
“In the essential mission of serving the health needs of the community, we worked to intentionally create a building that feels rooted here, one that belongs here in St. Croix,” he said. “You will see that reflected in the materials and the design language — the use of limestone, bright and vibrant colors, patterns inspired by madras. These elements are not decorative afterthoughts; they are meaningful expressions of identity, pride and place.”
Senate President Milton Potter honored Dr. Donna Christensen as a “pioneering daughter of the Virgin Islands whose distinguished career and timeless advocacy elevated health care as both a right and a responsibility.”
“She taught us that the true measure of a society is found not in wealth or prestige, but in how well it nurtures and cares for its people,” he said. “Health care, at its core, is the great equalizer. It is where compassion meets science and where dignity meets action. It affirms that every life — regardless of circumstance — is worthy of care, healing and hope. And when a community invests in health care, it invests in the strength of its future.”
One person attending Tuesday’s groundbreaking was able to speak directly to the legacy of care provided by those who worked at the Charles Harwood Memorial Complex. Pauline Edith Canton, 94, told the Source that she was a former associate director of nursing at the medical center.
“We worked from the heart,” she said.
