ST. GEORGE — A new hospital is slated for the Desert Color area by Interstate 15 following a vote by city officials approving a requested zone change last Thursday.
The St. George City Council unanimously approved an amendment to the Atkin Interchange area zone plan allowing a proposed hospital and related facilities across 17 acres set between I-15, the Southern Parkway and Desert Color Parkway.
“I’m really excited for this,” Councilwoman Michelle Tanner said. “I have to say it’s long overdue.”
Slated to be built in phases, the first phase of the proposed Zion Regional Medical Center will see the construction of a two-story, 80,000-square-foot facility with 24 patient beds, four operating rooms, 12 emergency bays and supporting imaging and lab services. A helipad for a medical helicopter also will be built.
The second phase will expand the hospital to a four-story structure with an increase to 148,000 square feet and a total of 88 patient beds and expanded services.
Two medical office buildings, one three stories and the other four stories, are planned for the third phase of the project and will feature underground parking.
General access to the new hospital will be via Desert Color Parkway.
The hospital system said to manage the new hospital once it is up and running is Tennessee-based QHR Health.
If the Zion Regional Medical Center sounds familiar, it is because it was originally planned to be built on 41 acres of land along 3050 East behind the Home Depot and Walmart stores in Washington City.
The City Council approved a zone request last December allowing for a hospital to be built there.
Councilwoman Natalie Larsen told St. George News that complications with the original location, such as traffic access and the availability of power, evidently resulted in the developer having to consider a new spot for the proposed hospital.
Hospital services in St. George and the surrounding region have been offered through Intermountain Healthcare for many years through the St. George Regional Hospital, formerly known as the Dixie Regional Medical Center.
Prior to the approval for the new hospital in Desert Color along I-15, another hospital, this one to be run by Steward Health Care, was approved for Washington City just off the Washington Parkway/I-15 interchange.
Ed. note: It was originally reported that Quorum Health would operate the incoming hospital. This was reported in error and has been corrected. QHR was originally a part of Quorum Heath, but was sold to Grant Avenue Capital in June 2021 and operates as a separate entities.
Photo Gallery
A rendering of the Zion Regional Medical Center proposed for the Desert Color area by Exit 2 in St. George, Utah | Rendering courtesy of the city of St. George, St. George News
A map showing the three-phase building plan for the Zion Regional Medical Center proposed for the Desert Color area by Exit 2 in St. George, Utah | Rendering courtesy of the city of St. George, St. George News
The location of the Zion Regional Medical Center proposed for the Desert Color area by Exit 2 in St. George, Utah | Rendering courtesy of the city of St. George, St. George News
A rendering of the Zion Regional Medical Center proposed for the Desert Color area by Exit 2 in St. George, Utah | Rendering courtesy of the city of St. George, St. George News
A rendering of the Zion Regional Medical Center proposed for the Desert Color area by Exit 2 in St. George, Utah | Rendering courtesy of the city of St. George, St. George News
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