On Thursday, February 18, NewsLanc spoke with Lancaster General Health spokesman John Lines regarding the current status of the proposed facility expansion in West Earl township. Having obtained township zoning approval last fall, the health care provider is currently examining potential traffic impacts and is in talks with the township regarding provision of utilities to the site, Lines said.
According to Lines, LGH has not yet submitted drawings or development plans to the township. This will happen “within the year,” Lines noted, though not specifying any projected groundbreaking date.
The planned facility would be located within three miles of Ephrata Community Hospital, which serves the surrounding population within the its present capacity. A September 2009 article from the Intell New Era reported that the new facility could contain up to 600,000 square feet of space—roughly equivalent to the LGH health campus.
Lines stressed to NewsLanc that any reported previously figures are mere speculation. “It would be premature,” Lines said, to specify the project’s size, design, or cost at the present time. All of these matters will be discussed later this year, when LGH presents its development plans to the township.
At that time, Lines said, the plans will be discussed in a public forum, where township officials and residents can present their thoughts and concerns regarding the project’s traffic and environmental impacts.
“We’re planning for something that will be developed over decades,” Lines asserted, “That’s not something that we’re going to rush.”
