New Gundersen helicopter hangar is officially in operation

City of Decorah officials held a walk-through of the new Gundersen Medlink Helicopter hangar on Friday.

The hangar is 60 feet wide by 65 feet deep and 24 feet tall.  It includes a 50 foot wide overhead door that opens in order to house the helicopter.  It also has space in the building for medical supplies, helicopter parts and an office.

A company from Delhi, Dave's Complete Construction, Inc., was the general contractor on the project.

Gundersen Health Systems will pay $1 million in lease payments over a 15-year period for the use of the hangar, but will receive a 20-year lease, with no payments the final five years. 

The City of Decorah will pay between $250,000 to $300,000 in bond financing costs for the project. 

Gundersen Health Systems added the Decorah helicopter to its fleet so it could better serve Northeast Iowa and lower response times in the area.