NCH Healthcare System is moving forward with its plans to operate a 24/7 emergency room in south Lee County.
Less than a month after Estero put a stop to a nearly identical proposal in the village, NCH Healthcare System moved its project south and announced it will build an outpatient medical center with an emergency department in Bonita Springs.
NCH emailed a news release as a response to Daily News questions about the new project.
The 41,000-square-foot, two-story facility is expected to include a freestanding emergency department, outpatient surgery services, physician offices and imaging services, according to the news release.
The Collier County-based nonprofit said it has begun clearing land on the future site of NCH Healthcare Bonita, between Walden Center Drive and U.S. 41, in Bonita Springs, at the city's border with Estero. The site is next to Diamond Oaks Village and across the street from Angelina's Ristorante.
It also is about half a mile from competitor Lee Health's $140 million outpatient health village, which is under construction off of Via Coconut Point.
Lee Health declined to comment on NCH's project in Bonita Springs.
The city of Bonita Springs approved a development order for the project on March 28, according to Lee County property records.
Jacqueline Genson, planning and zoning manager for Bonita Springs, said NCH has a building permit for vertical construction on the property.
The NCH project is expected to cost about $34 million and create 80 new jobs, according to the news release.
A sign at the site facing U.S. 41 states the NCH facility will open in "late 2018."