Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is preparing to clear land for SMH-North Port, the city’s first full-service hospital, while also planning a $57 million expansion to accommodate future growth.
The Sarasota County Public Hospital Board approved adding three floors of shell space to the hospital’s nine-story main tower and one floor to the adjacent three-story medical office building. The expansion, part of the $507 million project, will allow the hospital to double capacity from 100 to 208 beds and increase office space from 60,000 to 90,000 square feet.
Groundbreaking is scheduled for November on the North Sumter Boulevard site near Interstate 75. Building the shell space during initial construction will minimize future disruption and allow for rapid expansion as the south county population grows.
The hospital will offer emergency, surgical, specialty, diagnostic, and outpatient services, with private patient rooms on floors four through six. Floors seven through nine will remain unfinished until demand requires buildout. Long-term plans could grow the campus to more than 400 beds.
Jeff Wesner, former COO of SMH-Venice, has been named president of SMH-North Port. The hospital is slated to open in fall 2028, joining SMH’s network of facilities across the region.
For updates, visit smh.com/NorthPortUpdates.
