(KNZA)--Plans are being put in place to reopen the Horton Community Hospital.

That was revealed during a community meeting Thursday evening at the Horton High School auditorium, which had originally been scheduled to provide an update on healthcare options that have been explored since the March 12 closure of the hospital.

The large crowd on hand erupted into applause after Horton City Administrator John Calhoon made the surprise announcement.

Calhoon said the plan to reopen was developed during an about one hour conference call Thursday afternoon with the court-appointed trustee involved with the bankruptcy filing that came two days after the hospital’s closure.

Involved in the conference call were Calhoon, hospital Chief of Staff Dr. Richard Brown and Hospital CEO Ty Compton.

Although he couldn’t offer specifics, Calhoon said the planned reopening would happen in phases over the next couple of months, including the opportunity to immediately obtain medical records. “We can’t be real specific, but I’m hoping we have full services back within a month to no more than three months.”

Calhoon said many of the immediate decisions will be at the discretion of the court-appointed trustee, but additional details could be released as early as sometime Friday. 

During Thursday evening’s meeting, Calhoon assured those in attendance that the trustee appears to be just as concerned as they all were and wants to be of help to the community. 

After Calhoon’s announcement, Dr. Brown addressed the crowd, stating that he wanted to clear up the notion that the hospital was losing money, which created the problems that led to the hospital's closure. “We are fiscally sound and financially viable,” said Brown, “I believe we were systematically ripped off over the last decade.” He said he feels justified in that thought process by the fact that the trustee and courts, after an examination of the hospitals books, are willing to move forward with reopening the hospitals doors.