A new $18.8 million utility plant will allow Rapid City Regional Hospital to expand to the south, hospital CEO Tim Sughrue said Wednesday.

"It's an expensive project and it's a time-consuming project," Sughrue said. But he added, "We can do no additional expansion on this campus without it."

The new heating and air conditioning plant will have more than double the capacity of the current plant, which is part of the south side of the main hospital building.

The new plant, near Third Street on the southeast side of the hospital, will be connected to the main buildings by a 680-foot tunnel.

Sughrue said the hospital's emergency department likely would be the first to expand.

The old heating plant will be used as a maintenance shop at first, but Sughrue said that eventually it could be torn down to make room for a new tower for patient rooms.

Contact Harlan at 394-8424 or at bill.harlan@rapidcityjournal.com