Building Back Stronger: A New Unicoi County Hospital Takes Shape
For the Unicoi County community, August 19 marked an important milestone: the groundbreaking of a new hospital.
Nearly two years after Hurricane Helene devastated the area and left the community’s hospital unsafe, Ballad Health, community leaders and project partners gathered to celebrate the start of construction. For ESa, the day held special meaning. Our team designed the previous Unicoi County Hospital, and we’re honored to help create what comes next.
The new hospital will bring essential healthcare services back to the community while taking what was learned from the past and applying it to the future.
Designing for Resilience
Hurricane Helene had a lasting impact on Unicoi County, and the experience has shaped the planning for the new hospital. The 15-acre site in the Town of Unicoi was selected with accessibility and emergency preparedness in mind. Located near Interstate 26, the site includes two points of access and sits at approximately the same elevation as the interstate, about five feet above the 500-year floodplain.
The hospital is also being designed to meet federal and state emergency preparedness standards, supporting continued access to care when the community needs it most.
For ESa, these decisions are an important part of designing a healthcare facility that serves its community for the long term. A hospital has to work well on an ordinary Tuesday and be ready for something very different when circumstances demand it.
At approximately 40,000 square feet, the new hospital is intentionally sized around the needs of Unicoi County. The facility will include 10 inpatient beds, a 10-bed emergency department and diagnostic imaging services, including X-ray, MRI, CT and mammography. An attached Medical Office Building will give physicians space to see patients locally, keeping more outpatient care close to home.
Bringing these services together creates a connected campus for patients, families and care teams. The design also allows the facility to adapt as the community’s healthcare needs change. For a rural community, having access to this range of care nearby can make a meaningful difference.
ESa’s connection to Unicoi County goes back to the previous hospital. Having designed that facility, our team has a unique understanding of the community and the role the hospital has played over the years. That experience became part of the conversation about what the new hospital should be.
The design carries forward that familiarity while incorporating the technology, infrastructure and planning strategies expected of a modern healthcare facility. It also considers the people who will use the building every day from patients and families to physicians, nurses and staff.
A New Chapter for Unicoi County
More than 300 community members, business leaders, elected officials and project partners attended the August 19 groundbreaking, a reflection of how important this hospital is to Unicoi County.
The new hospital is expected to open in 2028, bringing inpatient care back to the community and providing a new home for the physicians, nurses and staff who have continued serving local patients throughout the recovery.