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Ephraim health leaders unveil $120 million master facility plan to expand ER, critical care and parking
Summary
Hospital leaders described a roughly $120 million, multi‑year project that would add parking, expand the emergency department and critical care capacity, move the helipad onto a new tower and reorganize several campus buildings to improve patient access.
Dan McKay, identified in the meeting as the chief executive and president of the health system presenting to Boyle County Fiscal Court on Jan. 14, 2025, described a roughly $120 million master facility plan to modernize the hospital campus in downtown Danville.
The project, as McKay outlined it, will address parking and wayfinding, expand emergency and critical care capacity, relocate behavioral health services and move the helipad to a new critical‑care tower. "We wanted to come and give you an update because we're a block over your neighbor and give you a chance to ask some questions," McKay told the court during the presentation.
The plan is phased over multiple years and is intended to make the campus easier to navigate for patients and emergency services. Nick Spoonmore, the health system's vice president of strategic initiatives, said the first phases already completed or under way include the KSD parking lot and the Coleman lot across Third Street. Spoonmore said the KSD lot alone added roughly 250 parking spaces to the campus and that Coleman will be used for valet parking.
Spoonmore detailed the construction program for the new "critical care tower". The plan calls for an expanded emergency department that would add eight treatment bays and an eight‑bed observation unit, a second floor for catheterization and interventional radiology expansion and a third floor reserved for future intensive care unit (ICU) capacity (Spoonmore said the future buildout could yield a 24‑bed ICU where a 12‑bed ICU exists today). He also said the project includes a two‑story parking structure and moving the helipad to the top of the new tower to reduce transfer times.
Spoonmore said the organization is aiming for roughly a 32‑month construction schedule for the main phases and expects to begin visible work in mid to late summer. He described the challenge of keeping the emergency department functional during construction, saying the team is "kind of building this car as we're driving it" and acknowledged the complexity of running an active ED while expanding it.
The presenters said the project is intended to keep more patients in Danville rather than being transferred to Lexington, and to support growth in specialty services. Dan McKay said the system employs about 1,800 people and reported a payroll of about $120 million last year, remarks the presenters used to underscore the project's local economic impact. McKay also said contractors estimate an average of about 80 construction workers on site per day during peak phases, which the presenters said will provide local economic activity for hotels and restaurants.
Court members asked questions about daily helicopter transfers, phasing, staging and the location of materials yards. Spoonmore and McKay said the hospital has mobile plans for staging and is working with local property owners to secure staging and access. They also said the behavioral health unit is scheduled to move to a different tower in June, which would allow demolition of the old North Tower and follow‑on work this summer.
The hospital team offered to return to the court in roughly six months with visuals and drone imagery as designs are refined.
