If you’ve driven down West Red Bank Avenue in Woodbury lately, you might have felt a bit of a gut punch. That massive brick structure, the one that basically anchored the downtown for over a century, is disappearing. It’s a strange sight. Seeing Underwood Memorial Hospital Woodbury NJ—or what we’ve known as Inspira Woodbury for the last decade—being dismantled piece by piece feels like watching a piece of Gloucester County’s DNA get scrubbed away.
Honestly, for a lot of us, it wasn’t just a building. It was the place where your kids were born, or where you sat in a cramped waiting room at 2:00 AM hoping for good news. But things change. Healthcare in 2026 doesn't look like it did in 1915, and the reality of why Underwood had to go is actually a lot more complicated than "they just wanted a newer building."
The Old Underwood vs. Modern Medicine
Let’s be real: the old hospital was showing its age. By the time the merger with South Jersey Healthcare happened back in 2012 to form Inspira, the physical plant was struggling. We’re talking about a facility that grew in fits and starts for a hundred years. You’d have one wing from the 70s connected to a section from the 50s, and the plumbing and electrical systems were basically a nightmare to maintain.
Experts from HKS, a big-deal hospital planning firm, actually did an audit years ago. They found that the cost to bring the Woodbury site up to modern standards—everything from the cooling systems to the "brick and glazing" failing on the exterior—was astronomical. It was actually $50 million cheaper to build the brand-new hospital in Mullica Hill than to fix every single thing wrong with the Woodbury campus.
That’s a tough pill to swallow for a city that relied on the hospital for foot traffic and jobs. At its peak, Underwood employed around 1,800 people. When the "big move" happened in late 2019, most of those jobs followed the beds to the new $356 million facility near Rowan University.
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What’s Actually Happening On-Site Right Now?
It’s January 2026, and if you walk by the corner of Broad and Red Bank today, you’re going to see a lot of dust. Full-scale demolition of the core medical buildings finally kicked into high gear in late 2025. This wasn't a "wrecking ball in one afternoon" kind of deal. It’s been a multi-phase project.
They started with interior gutting—getting out the asbestos and the old equipment—and now the heavy machinery is eating through the Medical Arts Building. The goal is to have the site cleared by the spring of this year.
But here’s the thing: Underwood Memorial Hospital Woodbury NJ isn't totally gone. It’s just... transformed.
- The Satellite ER: You can still get emergency care in Woodbury. There is a brand-new, 24,900-square-foot satellite Emergency Department that opened recently. It’s a 19-bed unit that handles 24/7 crises.
- Behavioral Health: This is actually a huge part of the new campus. There's a 20-bed inpatient behavioral health center that moved into a new two-story building across the street from the old ER.
- The "Innovation District": This is the phrase the city and Inspira keep using. They aren't just leaving a hole in the ground. The plan is to turn that prime real estate into a mix of market-rate housing, retail, and maybe even a boutique hotel with a conference center.
Why the Move to Mullica Hill Still Stings
You can’t talk about Underwood without talking about the loss of the "neighborhood hospital" feel. In the 1920s, Dr. Brewer (who started the "Memorial" half of Underwood-Memorial) used to have a hospital that felt like a house. Literally. It was a renovated Victorian home. Back then, if you needed a surgery, the local police might help carry you up the stairs because there wasn't an elevator for the first 30 years.
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That kind of intimacy is gone. The new Mullica Hill hospital is state-of-the-art—we're talking "smart rooms" and cutting-edge cancer care—but it's ten miles away. For someone in downtown Woodbury without a car, that ten miles might as well be a hundred.
The city is trying to bridge that gap with the proposed "Eds and Meds" light rail line, but infrastructure moves at a snail's pace. In the meantime, the local pharmacy and the little lunch spots on Broad Street have definitely felt the absence of those 1,600 employees who used to walk over for a sandwich.
The Future of the Woodbury Campus
So, what’s the actionable takeaway for someone living in the area?
First, don't go to the old main entrance if you have an emergency. Use the new Pavilion on Oak Street. It’s easy to get confused because the old signage is being torn down, but the Satellite ER is fully functional and honestly a lot faster than the old one used to be.
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Second, keep an eye on the Woodbury Health and Education Innovation District plans. The city has been holding community discussions, and this is where you actually get a say in what replaces the hospital. We're looking at a site that could bring hundreds of new residents to the city center, which might actually be the "shot in the arm" (sorry, had to) that the local economy needs.
The era of Underwood Memorial Hospital Woodbury NJ as a massive, 300-bed acute care hub is over. It’s a behavioral health and emergency outpost now. It’s smaller, leaner, and—if the developers are right—it’s going to be the catalyst for a Woodbury comeback that’s been decades in the making.
Next Steps for Residents:
- Locate the New ER: Familiarize yourself with the entrance on Oak Street before you actually have an emergency.
- Check Services: If you need imaging or lab work, many of those services are still available at the Inspira Health Center Woodbury on Red Bank Ave, even while the main hospital building is being razed.
- Community Meetings: Attend the upcoming City of Woodbury redevelopment sessions to see the final architectural renderings for the residential and retail units slated for the site.