The project will be built on 79 acres, and will include a135,000-sf medical office building, smaller office facilities, anambulatory surgery center, a cancer center and a heart center. Thecompanies have applied with the state to build a hospital with upto 300 rooms, but a law preventing the move of beds from underusedhospitals has kept the project from receiving a certificate ofneed.

Philip Incarnati, McLaren president and CEO, says in a statementthat the company believes the need for the hospital is there. "Westudied the area very carefully, and discovered that comprehensivehealthcare services weren't available," Incarnati says. "We'redetermined to provide the residents of the City of Clarkston andIndependence Township access to the most recent state-of-the-arttechnologies and comprehensive healthcare facilities."

Construction will take place in three phases. The first phasewill feature the 135,000-sf office building for Clarkston MedicalGroup, and will include a 15,000-sf ambulatory surgical center.Also included in this phase will be a 30,000-sf, freestandingcancer treatment center with gardens, bike paths and walkingtrails, which will be open to the public. This phase should becomplete by January 2009.