Sometime in November, a new wellness facility is opening in Harrodsburg. Ephraim McDowell Health (EMH) is making plans to open a new wellness center in the former home of the Wilderness Trace YMCA at 130 N. College St.

“We’re excited to be able to bring something to Mercer County and fill a void for something they’ve lost,” said Keith Bridges, vice president of EMH. “In all reality, that’s truly our motivation in trying to bring this facility downtown, in what was once the Y.”

Bridges said they haven’t officially settled on a name yet, “that’s how early we are.”

A lease is expected to be signed on the lower level of the facility by sometime next week, he said; they currently have a tentative agreement. Equipment will have to be ordered, as there is none currently in the facility.

“Everything is going to be top of the line. We’re excited about what we’re doing and hopefully the folks there will be too,” Bridges said. 

There are already nice men’s and women’s locker rooms in the facility, he said. They hope to be able to offer classes and potentially use portions of the gymnasium. A daycare or after-school facility is currently operating out of the second floor, Bridges said, but he cannot comment about that center’s future plans.

“We’re not taking that space,” he said.

Bridges said they plan to allow individuals who purchase a membership to use either the Danville or Harrodsburg facilities.

“Mercer County is part of the whole system for Ephraim McDowell. We have served the folks up there for a long time; they’re hometown folks to us,” Bridges said. “We are excited to be able to fill a void.”

Bridges would not comment on ongoing rumors regarding a merger between the James B. Haggin Memorial Hospital in Harrodsburg and Ephraim McDowell Health, the parent company of Ephraim McDowell Regional Medical Center in Danville.