ST. JOHN, WA – The Port of Whitman County is hosting a public demolition event at 9:00 am on Monday, March 16, at 4 S. Main Street in St. John, marking the first step in an environmental cleanup that will eventually make way for a new medical clinic in the small community.

The event, dubbed “Demolition and Donuts,” will begin with brief remarks followed by a ceremonial demolition of the former St. John Café building. Coffee and donuts will be provided. The public is invited and encouraged to attend.

The Port purchased the roughly three-quarter-acre parcel on Main Street in 2024 with plans to develop a new Whitman Hospital and Medical Clinics location. The site, which previously housed retail stores and a gas station that operated into the 1970s, requires environmental cleanup before construction can begin.