VA campus crane over 3 times taller than JC’s tallest building, provides heavy lifting for $70 million investment | WJHL

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) – Johnson City residents and visitors may have noticed a new addition to the skyline in the last few days now that a massive crane towers over the James H. Quillen Veteran’s Affairs (VA) Medical Center campus.

The structure, which can be spotted from I-26 to Main Street, plays a vital role in ongoing construction in the area. According to VA Public Affairs Officer Josh Higgins, a brand new parking addition is on the way to provide spaces for staff and patients that utilize the complex.

The machine currently dwarfs the structure it’s working on, with complex timberwork foundations underneath and swinging cables overhead. Photos from the construction site show it hails from Superior Cranes, Inc. and is stacked high with counterweights. The heavy lifting will be used to add another two levels and an elevator to the current structure as well as a skywalk from the garage into Building 160.

The project is slated to finish in June 2022, so you can expect to see the spires for the next few months. The crane itself is rather unique, currently standing at 405 feet tall. For perspective, that’s roughly 284 feet, or 3.3 times, taller than the John Sevier Center, Johnson City’s tallest downtown structure. Higgins said the machine is the 8th largest in the United States, and there are plans in the works to tack on another 144 feet before the project is done.

For the construction enthusiast and taxpayer alike, this structure represents a rare – and expensive – sight in the Tri-Cities. Higgins said the equipment is taking part in over $70 million being invested across campus, with some renovation areas listed below:

• Infrastructure and Grounds;
• Building 34 (Clock Tower);
• Building 20;
• Historic Chapel;
• Building 200 (Main Hospital) Ground Floor;
• Building 200 Emergency Department;
• Building 160 (Mental Health) 4th Floor.