Walking trails and preserved wetlands are part of the plan at the new Lakeview Hospital in Stillwater, as shown in renderings distributed by Bloomington-based HealthPartners. This view shows what the building is expected to look like from the northwest portion of the new hospital campus when it opens in 2028.

Big windows. A view of the pond. Parking for 804 vehicles. A baker’s dozen worth of operating rooms.

Those are some of the specs for the new Lakeview Hospital in Stillwater that Bloomington-based HealthPartners plans to open in early 2028.

Construction should begin this summer after the Stillwater City Council on Tuesday approved final designs and plans for the replacement facility, located about 3 miles west and a little south of the existing Lakeview Hospital on Churchill Street.

Planning details were released Tuesday evening by HealthPartners, one of the state’s largest operators of hospitals and clinics as well as a big health insurer.

Last year, the health system provided information on the development to bondholders who will finance about $300 million of the construction costs.

This illustration, distributed by HealthPartners in May, shows the expected facade for the health system's new Lakeview Hospital in Stillwater.

Here’s what we know:

The final price tag could range from $400 million to $500 million.
On land at Hwy. 36 and Manning Avenue that HealthPartners acquired in 2017, the new campus will be about double the size of the current location.
The new hospital will measure 400,000 square feet, about two times bigger than the existing Lakeview Hospital.

This HealthPartners illustration shows the southwest clinic entrance for the new hospital.

The number of hospitals beds is holding steady at 97, with 77 of them expected to be staffed for patients at opening.
Operating room capacity will be doubled, with 13 rooms for inpatients and outpatients. There will be five procedure rooms, as well.

This HealthPartners illustration shows the emergency department entrance for the health system's new hospital in Stillwater. HealthPartners expects ER visits to increase by 32% by 2032.

Groundbreaking is scheduled for July.
HealthPartners projects inpatient care will grow by 23%, and ER visits by 32%, by 2032. Demand for cancer care, orthopedics and heart care is expected to grow by more than 15% in the next five years.
Population in the St. Croix Valley is expected to grow by 5% in the next five years, HealthPartners says, including an 18% increase in people over the age of 65.
The new hospital development will include 1.5 miles of walking trails that connect to city and county trail systems. There are plans for on-site bike racks.
Some existing wetland will be developed, but 94% overall will be preserved, according to HealthPartners, which estimates that about two-thirds of existing trees will be preserved. Additional trees will be added “to support local wildlife and create a noise buffer for nearby neighbors,” according to materials distributed by the health system.
Plans call for an additional 13 acres of low-maintenance native prairie grasses.

This map shows the location for the new Lakeview Hospital campus in Stillwater. HealthPartners distributed the image in November 2023. There are plans for 1.5 miles of walking trails that will connect with city and county trails.