(North Liberty, IA) -- Crews are starting to work on a new $230 million University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics facility in North Liberty. The facility will have 48-beds and 21-emergency care rooms as well as an outpatient clinic and pharmacy, labs and offices in the 469,000 square feet facility, on a 60 acre site at the corner of Forevergreen Road and Highway 965.

“Today marks the beginning of a new chapter in meeting the health care needs of patients and families from across the entire state of Iowa,” says Brooks Jackson, MD, MBA, Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Iowa and the Tyrone D. Artz Dean of the Carver College of Medicine. “The new campus will allow us to better meet Iowa’s growing need for highly specialized, comprehensive care and additional highly trained health care professionals.”

“We’ve been operating at a very high capacity for a long time, and our staff have been working around existing space constraints in order to provide high-quality patient care,” says Suresh Gunasekaran, MBA, CEO, UI Hospitals & Clinics and associate vice president for University of Iowa Health Care. “These new facilities will begin to reduce congestion on our main campus, improve resident education, and enhance the patient experience by providing convenient access to world-class physicians and state-of-the-art technology.”

“Ultimately, this project will help us recruit world-class physicians, nurses, and other health care professionals to live and work in Iowa, as well as attract a cadre of outstanding students and trainees,” says Jackson.

The facility is expected to open in 2025.

Area hospitals have opposed the project, citing concerns about an over-saturation of the health care market. The project was denied by the State Health Facilities Council in February. UI Health tried again in May for a Certificate of Need. The panel reversed its decision in August of this year.