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The hospital's financial troubles were well documented. It filed for bankruptcy in 2007. The medical center was a laughingstock, Berlucchi said. But there was a belief that brighter days were ahead.

Sixteen years later, there are big things happening at Auburn Community Hospital. A $15 million cancer center is under construction at the corner of Lansing and North streets. The hospital is also launching the Auburn Heart Institute, a facility that will provide cardiac care to Cayuga County residents and, if the vision comes to fruition, people from far outside central New York. 

"What's happening right here in Auburn is the 'Field of Dreams,'" Berlucchi said. They are all going to be coming here. We'll take care of Auburn. We'll take care of Cayuga. But mark my words, you'll see out-of-state plates. You'll see Canadian plates. You're going to see the whole region coming to Auburn for the level of care that we're providing." 

Dr. Ronald Kirshner has been named chair and medical director of the Auburn Heart Institute. Kirshner is a heart surgeon who previously was the chief of cardiac services and cardiothoracic surgery at the Sands-Constellation Heart Institute at Rochester Regional Health. 

In Auburn and Cayuga County, Kirshner sees a need for a comprehensive cardiac care center. For residents here, he said the risk of dying from heart disease is "significantly higher" than other parts of the state. 

Kirshner recalled that Berlucchi asked him to come to Auburn and recommend improvements to its cardiac care offerings. The idea to establish the heart institute was borne out of that study. The institute, which will be located on the third floor in a renovated wing of the hospital, will offer many cardiac care services, from diagnostic testing to a cardiac catheterization laboratory. The long-term goal is to be able to perform procedures and surgeries at the facility. 

"We're going to start out with the highest quality and that will be our North Star," Kirshner said, adding that he thinks the heart institute will be part of Auburn becoming a destination hospital. 

The destination piece of that strategy won't be just for patients. Berlucchi noted that when Kirshner led the heart institute in Rochester, officials from the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic visited to learn more about what they were doing at the center. 

With the addition of the heart Institute at the hospital, Berlucchi thinks that leaders from rural health systems across the country will come to educate themselves about what's happening in Auburn. 

The latest developments at Auburn Community Hospital, its leaders say, are due to their different approach during the COVID-19 pandemic. As other health systems were reeling from the effects of the crisis, Berlucchi said they were looking ahead to the future. 

"Nobody ever expected a pandemic. Nobody ever expected COVID," Berlucchi said. "But when it did hit, we all understood the importance of the hospital and the men and women that are dedicated to serving the hospital. We watched (hospital systems) collapse all around... But Auburn Community Hospital stood firm in the tempest of the winds. We rode the tide."

He continued, "It was scary at some point but the board leadership, administrative leadership, we just stayed extremely focused on the needs of the community." 

That strategic planning was rewarded by the state earlier this year. New York awarded $21 million to Auburn Community Hospital for two projects, including operating room improvements — part of the hospital's plan to expand surgical capacity. The state grant will also help fund the establishment of the heart institute.