SYRACUSE -- The second phase of construction is underway at St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center.

St. Joe's hosted a groundbreaking ceremony this morning to mark the start of the $140 million expansion project, which is a nearly 50 percent larger investment than the first phase.

The expansion includes construction of operating rooms, a PeriAnesthesia Care Unit (PACU), Intensive Care Units, medical-surgical private patient rooms, family waiting areas and a central sterile unit. The expansion also features a greenway connection to North side businesses, green space and campus lighting added to the North end of St. Joseph's Prospect Hill campus.

The project will generate 400 long-term construction jobs and 150 new, permanent health care jobs.

The new surgical suite will include 14 operating rooms. Each one twice as big to accommodate today's state-of-the-art medical technology and larger surgical teams. The PeriAnesthesia Care Unit (PACU) will be expanded from 16 to 25 patient beds and will increase annual capacity from 10,500 to 14,000 patients. The PACU is designed to enhance care for patients just before and right after surgery.

The new Central Sterile Unit will be nearly four times larger than the current, 40-year-old unit. "Green" instrument washers will save water and electricity.

The expanded Medical and Surgical Intensive Care Units will include 38 private rooms. Each will be larger than the existing semi-private rooms.

The expansion also includes 72 new private patient rooms, replacing 36 semi-private rooms currently in use at the hospital. The rooms are 35 percent larger, allowing more space for families and visitors. "Private patient rooms are the wave of the future in health care," said Mary Clare Ehde, manager of patient relations. "Not only does the law require us to maintain patient privacy, but a quiet, private environment is shown to help facilitate faster, healthier recoveries. Private rooms also help to reduce spread of infection."

According to St. Joe's, Phase 2A and B together are one of the largest green health care construction projects in New York State. The project may include solar panels, daylighting views, energy conserving systems, a greenway park, site drainage, and underground water and storm water infrastructure, all of which will reduce the hospital's energy costs.