Chapel Hill, N.C.-based UNC Health has filed certificate-of-need applications with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services for new hospitals in Wilmington and Asheville, the system said in two separate June 18 news releases.
Here are five things to know:
1. UNC Health filed for a proposed 150-bed community hospital in Wilmington on a 62-acre site at South 17th Street and Shipyard Boulevard. The facility would span approximately 543,790 square feet and reach seven floors, according to the system. UNC Health put the project cost at $852.7 million.
2. The state’s 2026 Medical Facilities Plan identified a need for 225 additional hospital beds in New Hanover County, according to UNC Health. Wilmington’s population grew 8.5% between 2020 and 2024, with adults 65 and older making up nearly 1 in 5 residents, the system said.
3. UNC Health separately announced plans to pursue a CON for a proposed 92-bed acute care hospital — to be called UNC Health West — in Asheville, at an estimated cost of $747.4 million. The facility would be a partnership between UNC Health and Hendersonville, N.C.-based UNC Health Pardee.
4. The Asheville proposal comes while UNC Health is still appealing a 2025 CON denial related to Buncombe County, the system said. UNC Health said it would build only one acute care hospital in the county depending on the outcome of the appeal or the new 2026 application.
5. A public hearing on the Wilmington CON is anticipated in August, with the state’s decision expected before year-end, according to UNC Health. The filings arrive as Atrium Health has also filed a CON for a hospital in New Hanover County.
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