Main Line Health aims to build a new hospital in Upper Providence Township, submitting a tentative sketch plan for a 42-acre site at the intersection of Route 29 and Arcola Road — directly across from Providence Town Center.
Representatives from the health system, including attorney Alyson Zarro and civil engineer Lindsey Brelylinger of Bohler Engineering, appeared before the Upper Providence Township Planning Commission on June 3 to explain the proposal ahead of formal review. The presentation was described as an introduction, with commissioners acknowledging the submission without conducting a detailed technical analysis.
A Phased Campus With Major Regional Footprint
Phase one of the project calls for a hospital building of approximately 500,000 square feet — five stories plus a walkout basement — with 108 beds and surface parking. Future phases, which the development team emphasized would unfold over a longer timeline, include two four-story office buildings totaling 140,000 square feet and two parking structures.
The site is currently split-zoned, with the majority designated IO-3 and a small residential parcel along Mennonite Road zoned R-1. Main Line Health has filed three simultaneous applications: a zoning text amendment, a zoning map amendment to allow use of the township's Institutional Overlay District, and a conditional use application — since the overlay district permits hospital facilities by conditional use.
Site Design and Traffic Considerations
The team highlighted efforts to minimize the project's impact on adjacent neighborhoods. The entire campus has been pulled southward to maximize buffering from residential properties to the north, with a minimum setback of approximately 77 feet from the nearest curb to the northern property line. A heavily planted buffer is planned for that edge of the site.
Three access points are proposed along Arcola Road. The primary entrance would add a fourth leg to the existing signalized intersection at Arcola Road and the Providence Town Center driveway. The two secondary access points are expected to be limited to right-in, right-out movements.
A gated emergency-only access point on Mennonite Road is also included. The access would be used only if Arcola Road becomes blocked or another emergency prevents normal access to the hospital.
Traffic studies are still underway. Breylinger noted that right turn lanes into the site will likely be required.
Existing natural features — including wetland areas, stream tributaries feeding Perkiomen Creek, steep slopes, and two stormwater basins built during prior road improvements — will be preserved without modification, according to the development team.
Breylinger mentioned the existing asphalt trail that runs along Arcola Road is expected to be maintained as part of the proposal.
What Comes Next
Commissioners acknowledged the submission, with township officials indicating the project will return for substantive review in a future meeting. The Main Line Health team noted that an existing health facility operated by the system is already located caddy-corner at the same intersection, making the proposed site a natural expansion of their township presence.
This article was generated with AI assistance. All content was reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by John McGuire.
