KING OF PRUSSIA, PA-The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia announced plans on Tuesday to break ground this summer on a 115,000-square-foot Specialty Care Center in a new development on North Gulph Road here.

The new complex will replace an existing one located on nearby Mall Boulevard.

The new facility will house all of the existing programs and specialties and add a new ambulatory surgery center to provide outpatient general and specialty surgical services to children of all ages. It will be staffed by CHOP's pediatric surgeons and anesthesiologists, along with a full-time staff of pediatric nurses.

The current center is comprised of two buildings occupying 70,000 square feet, and is one of more than 50 CHOP Care Network centers in Philadelphia, the surrounding counties and South Jersey. The new space, located in the Village at Valley Forge, will provide an additional 45,000 square feet, with the ability to expand up to a total of 195,000 square feet, to allow for future program growth.

"The growth of the CHOP Care Network has been in direct response to increasing demand for our services in the suburban communities surrounding Philadelphia,” says Amy Lambert, senior vice president of the CHOP Care Network. “Moving everything under one roof will enhance the patient experience by improving the flow of care to best serve our patients' needs.”