Lehigh Valley Hospital Network officials said they remain committed to plans for a $65 million hospital in Mahoning Township after municipal planners questioned its need earlier this week.

The 89,000-square-foot facility, to be called Lehigh Valley Hospital−Carbon, is planned for 35 acres of open farmland on the north side of Blakeslee Boulevard, catty-corner to the Walmart Superstore.

Initial plans call for a hospital that includes all private rooms for inpatient care and a medical office building.

The planners recommended that the Mahoning supervisors reject Lehigh Valley Health Network’s conditional use application.

“Although we were disappointed with the recommendations of the planning commission, we remain committed to our plan and to answering the supervisors’ questions about LVHN’s proposed new hospital in Mahoning Township,” said Terry Purcell, future president of LVH-Carbon.

The 35 acres of farmland along the busy highway where LVHN hopes to build its future facility is zoned for commercial use and tailored toward retail spaces, Robert Slaw, another commission member and Mahoning supervisor, said.

Seeing as it’s not included on the township’s list of approved uses for that lot, a hospital is subjected to the conditional application process. LVHN submitted its application earlier this month.

“For more than 65 years, Carbon County was served by two hospitals: Palmerton Hospital and Gnaden Huetten,” Purcell said.

“With the closure of the first and the impending changes at the second, the people of Carbon deserve a health partner who is ready to step in and bring them the care they need, close to home. We are that partner now and we hope to deepen that relationship with Lehigh Valley Hospital-Carbon.”

A public hearing on the prospective hospital scheduled for Nov. 18. Supervisors will make their determination at the November hearing, which begins at 6 p.m.

“It is part of our DNA as an organization to go where the need is greatest, and Carbon County has shown that its residents need more access to care, particularly as the population ages,” Purcell said.

“We always work closely with the communities we serve, and at present, thousands of Carbon County residents rely on Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) for convenient, high-quality care.”