OXFORD – The Mississippi State Department of Health has approved the Certificate of Need for Baptist Memorial Hospital-North Mississippi to build the new hospital that was first proposed several years ago.

The replacement facility will include 680,000 square feet of construction on a site west of the present 217-bed hospital, which dates to the early 1960s.

Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation of Memphis leased the current facility from Lafayette County and the Ccity of Oxford in 1989. It bought the property for $60 million with an agreement to create the new campus.

“This was another large step in our plans to build a larger, more advanced facility for Oxford, Lafayette County and the surrounding areas,” said Peyton Warrington, assistant administrator at BMH-NM. “After the 20-day appeal period, we will work with the architects and site planning firm to prepare the final architectural plans and bid packages.”

Design is expected to take up to 12 months, and site preparation could begin as early as next summer. Actual construction is estimated to take 28 months.

The proposed budget for the project is $313,508,083.

“The new hospital campus represents the single largest economic investment in the history of Oxford and Lafayette County and will further position Baptist North Mississippi as a regional referral center, providing greater accessibility for patients and space to expand services for generations to come,” Warrington said.

errol.castens@journalinc.com