SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Leaders from Beacon Health System broke ground on a new 10-story tower at Memorial Hospital in South Bend on Tuesday. The $232 million project will add 300,000 square feet and increase adult acute care beds from 249 to 302, Beacon said.

The new tower includes additional beds in the critical care unit.

“I am excited for the South Bend community to benefit from this patient tower. Its completion will increase the capacity of the critical care unit by doubling the amount of beds and increase the number of general medical beds by 53," said Matthew Koscielski, MD, ICU and Pulmonary Services Medical Director, Memorial Hospital in a press release. "There will be a cutting-edge medical facility that includes modern technology and computerized tools for patient care and safety that will make it easier for the staff and clinicians to care for these patients. The new tower will provide care for the most complex, the most critically injured and the most critically ill patients in the community. It will continue to be the home of the only Level II Trauma Center in Northern Indiana."

“We are raising the bar for inpatient care in our region and investing in our community with this historic initiative,” said Larry Tracy, President of Memorial Hospital. “But this is more than brick and mortar; we are planning for the future of healthcare with this commitment to our patients and our clinical teams.”

Construction is expected to be complete in late 2025 and the tower will open to patients in early 2026.

Artist rendering courtesy Beacon Health