Neighborhood Hospital Moves Forward in Lehigh Valley

Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), part of Jefferson Health, is set to open its fourth neighborhood hospital at the site of the former Champion spark plug factory in Hellertown, Pennsylvania.

The project, a collaboration between Peron Development and J.G. Petrucci Co. Inc., follows LVHN’s successful neighborhood hospital model, which aims to provide accessible, acute care while easing pressure on larger hospitals. Similar facilities in Macungie, Gilbertsville, and the upcoming Tannersville location have demonstrated strong community benefits.

Neighborhood hospitals, also known as micro-hospitals, will act as a link between LVHN’s ExpressCARE clinics and its larger hospitals, according to Dr. Brian Nester, LVHN’s president and CEO. Nester and other LVHN officials anticipate that these facilities will lead to shorter wait times in the emergency department, quicker inpatient admissions, shorter patient stays, and lower costs for patients.

The proposed facility will feature a three-story building of approximately 90,000 square feet. The ground floor will house a full-service emergency department comprising 11 ER beds, including one for psychiatric patients and 10 inpatient beds. The upper floors will be dedicated to medical offices, including family medicine, rehabilitation, and a sleep center. LVHN anticipates the hospital will treat an estimated 10,000 to 12,000 patients annually, with more complex cases being stabilized and transferred to larger hospitals.

Bohler’s Bethlehem team is providing site civil engineering design, permitting, and landscape architecture design. The team’s strategic site layout limited disturbance at the front of the site, allowing the developer to avoid an asphalt cap.

The site, formerly a spark plug manufacturing plant and an EPA Superfund location, has been fully remediated, with LVHN ensuring safe redevelopment. Learn more here.