A virtual groundbreaking for the Lehigh Valley Hospital- Carbon campus will take place Tuesday.

Lehigh Valley Health Network will conduct the event at noon on its Facebook page for the hospital.

At that time, LVHN President and Chief Executive Officer, Brian Nester, DO, MBA, FACOEP, and Terrence Purcell, President of Lehigh Valley Hospital-Carbon, will address a virtual audience to announce the official groundbreaking.

The hospital will be built on an open property at the East Blakeslee Boulevard location purchased by the health network cattycorner to the Walmart Superstore on Blakeslee Boulevard.

It will cover over 100,000-square-feet and feature 18 private inpatient beds, a 12-bay emergency department, two operating rooms, two procedure rooms and four observation rooms with plans to expand in the future.

The hospital will also have a helipad to transport critical patients as needed, while a medical office building is also planned as part of the project.

It will also feature telemedicine services from Lehigh Valley Heart Institute, Lehigh Valley Cancer Institute and Lehigh Valley Institute for Surgical Excellence.

Several weeks ago, heavy equipment was moved on site as Lehigh Valley Health Network prepares to do preliminary site work at the new hospital site to begin once all final approvals are received.

Earlier this month, township supervisors debated the ownership of escrow accounts, as well as what estimates for sewage and water facilities for the hospital could look like.

Supervisors said that further discussion with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is needed as well as the land at the intersection of East Blakeslee Boulevard and Troxell Road is now officially under the ownership of LVHN.

The board discussed the idea of changing the reverse subdivision waiver request process into something more similar to that of Franklin Township.

In March, the planning commission also gave conditional plan approval for one action regarding another subdivision off the Oscar E. Beck Family Trust land.

That action with LVHN subdivided 34.57 acres into two lots at the north side of East Blakeslee Boulevard near the intersection of Troxell Road.

Also in March, a letter from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission that was sent in December noted that the 35-acre piece of land must have a Phase 1 archaeological study completed because “there is high probability that National Register significant archaeological sites are present within this project area,” which could be “adversely affected by project activities.”