News

Pardee nears groundbreaking on southside clinic

By AMY B. MCCRAW and BILL MOSS, Published: December 3, 2025

Construction of a new UNC Health Pardee medical office building on Spartanburg Highway could break ground early next year after state finance regulators OK'd the county's plan to issue bonds for the project.

Commissioners at their Nov. 19 meeting approved a resolution to borrow up to $45 million to construct the clinic at the northwest corner of Spartanburg Highway and Shepherd Street.

“The repayment of this note is going to be through an agreement between Pardee Hospital and this board, as far as a lease arrangement. We do not anticipate paying this back with general tax funds,” County Commission Chair Bill Lapsley said when commissioners voted on the contract. Instead, Pardee’s lease payments would cover the debt service.

Assistant County Manager Christopher Todd said after the meeting that the board of commissioners has historically acted as the developer for Pardee’s medical office buildings. The county, which has strong financial scores from bond raters, typically can get lower interest rates that lower the costs of building, he said.

Medical office buildings such as the one on Spartanburg Highway and another Pardee office building planned for Mills River allow Pardee to expand its services and give more access to residents in those areas, Todd said. The Pardee board of directors has authorized a total of four major capital projects at a cost of at least $100 million, including a new clinic in Brevard and new operating suites on the main campus.

The North Carolina Local Government Commission on Tuesday granted Henderson County permission to borrow up to $45 million.

“Proceeds would be used to finance the costs of construction and equipping a new medical office building and related site improvements to expand UNC Health Pardee’s outpatient and primary care services within the county,” the LGC said. “Site improvements also would be done as part of the property purchase to support economic development and industrial recruitment initiatives.”

County commissioners in November accepted a guaranteed maximum price of $23.6 million for the project plus $3.67 million in soft costs including furniture, fixtures and equipment.

“We always have a resolution we have to do” to request LGC authorization, Todd said when asked what accounted for the $18 million difference. “That ($45 million) is a not-to-exceed number. We can never borrow more than that.”

The Hendersonville City Council authorized a rezoning for the building in July. The clinic will have access from Spartanburg Highway in front and Old Spartanburg Road in back, 195 parking spaces, a public drop off area and a drive-thru pharmacy. The institutional use is compatible with the city’s Gen H Comprehensive Plan, city planners said.

The 42,520-square-foot medical facility “not only aligns with GenH but it really aligns with (Pardee’s goal of) extending access to the southern part of the county,” John Bryant, Pardee’s vice president for operations and support services, told the council.