OSF HealthCare has withdrawn its state applications to build a replacement hospital in Ottawa and to discontinue services at the current facility, saying the project needs to be completely re-evaluated.

OSF Saint Elizabeth Medical Center in Ottawa will remain open and the withdrawal does not impact OSF’s regional hub plan in Peru, where OB and ICU services have already been consolidated.

In a news release, OSF said the decision follows significant shifts in construction costs, regulatory requirements, and regional healthcare needs since the original application was submitted.

OSF CEO Bob Sehring said “too much has changed since the initial filing for us to responsibly move forward without re-evaluating the project.”

OSF said the new planning process could take 18 months or more and said the community in eastern La Salle County would be more involved in the process, something state board members emphasized at its most recent meeting.

Ottawa Mayor Robb Hasty said he hopes the withdrawal could create an opportunity for OSF to “listen deeply to residents and our neighboring communities.”

“The concerns and lived experiences of our community and their patients shared throughout this process mattered,” Hasty said. “We trust that OSF will ground its future decisions in the realities and needs of the people who rely on this hospital every day.”