Orlando Health unveiled plans to reimagine its current Seminole County campus as a healthcare hub in downtown Longwood, anchored by a new free-standing emergency department (FSED).

Plans call for the FSED to be built and ready to serve the community in the summer of 2024, concurrent with the closure of Orlando Health South Seminole Hospital and the opening of the new Orlando Health Lake Mary Hospital.

Leaders at Orlando Health and officials with the City of Longwood are working together to create a destination for residents that complements the redesigned Reiter Park. The current campus is envisioned to include a 15-acre town center for the City of Longwood comprising a high-quality mix of multi-family residential, retail and office uses.

“We’re very proud of our nearly 40-year history here in Longwood as a hospital caring for so many people in our community and as one of the largest employers in the area,” says Shawn Molsberger, senior vice president of Orlando Health’s northeast region and president of Orlando Health South Seminole Hospital. “Working closely with the city, we’re making an investment into our community that allows us to continue providing a high level of care while bringing in new amenities that will further enhance the quality of life for Longwood residents.”

Most of the Longwood campus will be redeveloped, leaving two existing medical office buildings to continue offering important services such as cardiology, pulmonology, rehabilitation, general surgery, infectious disease, and urology. Plans are also underway to relocate behavioral health services at South Seminole Hospital to a new Central Florida location, where Orlando Health will develop a new dedicated facility to allow for greater access to clinical mental health services. An announcement on the new behavioral health project is expected soon. Construction on the new Longwood FSED is expected to begin in early 2023.

Source:  Orlando Health