Advocates for the reopening of Norwood Hospital cheered passage of state legislation last week that will allow the state to take control of the property – while noting the “long road” still ahead for the community hospital.

“This moment is meaningful, but it is not the end of the work,” Norwood General Manager Tony Mazzucco said Monday. “There are still important steps ahead and a long road before us. We will need the same spirit of collaboration and the same willingness to fight for a better future to see this through to completion. This is, in many ways, the end of the beginning. But today, we pause to recognize how far we have come — and the people who made it possible.”

Both the state House and Senate passed the bill, H. 5553, to authorize the state to take the Norwood Hospital property through eminent domain and transfer it to a new nonprofit operator by Friday. The legislation awaits the governor’s signature, which is due by Aug. 10.

Gov. Healey has indicated she is likely to sign the bill, stating in a WGBH segment last week she is “happy to support that legislation.”

The 215-bed hospital closed in 2020 after a flood caused so much damage the facility needed to be demolished and rebuilt. Subsequent financial struggles and the bankruptcy of the hospital operator Steward Health Care eventually halted the rebuilding process.

In an address to the property’s landlord Medical Properties Trust on Friday, bill co-sponsor Norwood Rep. John Rogers said “get out of Massachusetts” and directed them to “cut a deal with a qualified nonprofit hospital operator we’ll accept.”

The Norwood Hospital Task Force, a group of town officials, first responders, and others from Norwood and surrounding areas, released a statement celebrating the legislation Monday as a step towards their “Finish Norwood Hospital” campaign.

The task force said residents in the region have “faced serious public health risks since the facility’s closure,” noting the public process outlined in the legislation promises to “ensure that Norwood Hospital returns to operation.”

Upon taking effect, the law states the property will be transferred to the Department of Public Health to be given to a qualified nonprofit operator.

“Our constituencies are eager to regain adequate access to a fully functioning hospital nearby,” said Walpole Select Board and Norwood Hospital Task Force member James O’Neil. “We’re fully committed to seeing this project through to the end, and our team gets bigger and more motivated with each step in the right direction.”