When John Peter Smith deeded land in 1877 for a county hospital, he set a clear purpose: to provide care for the community. JPS Health Network CEO Dr. Karen Duncan said that legacy still guides the system today, describing health care as “a human right and not a privilege” as leaders and community members gathered April 16 for the ceremonial groundbreaking of the new hospital.
The new facility will be a 1.1-million-square-foot medical center and represents the final phase of a comprehensive master facility plan valued at roughly $2.5 billion. Hospital officials say the standalone hospital portion is budgeted at about $1.5 billion and is scheduled for completion in 2030. A Medical Outpatient Building is also under construction and expected to open in 2029, while recent work on the campus has already delivered a parking garage, a psychiatric emergency center and a primary care site in Southwest Tarrant.
Located at the corner of South Main and East Morphy streets, the replacement hospital will raise inpatient capacity from the current 582 beds to more than 740, with room to expand to about 800 in the future. The design includes two patient-room towers and space for emergency, trauma and surgical services, as well as updated maternal and neonatal intensive care units aimed at serving higher-acuity needs.
“We are building more than a hospital,” said D.T. Nguyen, chair of the JPS Board of Managers, at the groundbreaking, adding that the project embodies a promise to treat every person who comes through the doors with dignity and compassion. The expansion is primarily funded by an $800 million county bond voters approved in 2018, and leaders say the overall program has been paced by both logistical challenges and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which delayed the start of on-site hospital construction.
Project costs have grown since the plan was first envisioned: initial estimates of about $1.2 billion rose to $1.5 billion in 2022, then to $2.1 billion in 2024, and to the current roughly $2.5 billion figure. Hospital officials point to rising construction costs as a major factor. They also say no additional taxpayer bond dollars beyond the original $800 million have been tapped; the rest of the program shortfall is being covered through the health system’s operational budget. Over the planning period some elements were changed or dropped — for example, plans for four new outpatient medical homes were reduced to one — while other projects, like a Health Center for Women slated to open in December 2026, were added.
Officials acknowledge that even with this major expansion, continued population growth in the county will require additional capacity down the road. JPS leaders say the campus footprint allows for the potential addition of two more medical towers to meet future demand, and they are assessing options for the existing patient tower at 1500 S. Main as the new hospital comes online. For now, the focus at the groundbreaking was on moving forward with construction and preserving the hospital’s founding mission to serve everyone in the community.
