Ontario Construction News staff writer
EDMONTON – Alberta has selected the University of Alberta’s South Campus as the site for the new stand-alone Stollery Children’s Hospital, marking a major step toward building a modern pediatric facility to serve families across the province and Western Canada.
The hospital will be constructed on an undeveloped greenfield at the northeast corner of 122 Street and 51 Avenue. Officials say the location was chosen for its size, capacity for future expansion and proximity to the university’s existing health facilities, which will support closer collaboration between clinical teams, researchers and educators.
The chosen site “offers ample space and flexibility for future expansion, vital requirements for a hospital that will need to grow and adapt as healthcare needs continue to evolve.”
“Currently, the site is undeveloped greenspace, which means construction can proceed without demolishing or relocating buildings, allowing us to streamline the timeline and quickly build the best facility possible,” Infrastructure Minister Martin Long said at a press conference “With this milestone reached, planning has begun to determine the hospital’s space and service needs. Projects like this involve several critical steps before construction can begin.
“We wrapped up the business case last year and we’re on track to finish the rest of the planning phases in 2026. Then we will secure the funding necessary to carry out the construction.”
The current Stollery, which opened in 2001, operates within the University of Alberta Hospital and the Walter C. Mackenzie Health Sciences Centre.
Demand for specialized pediatric services continues to grow, and the province says the new hospital will support high-quality care for children from Edmonton, northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories.
“This is an exciting milestone for families in Alberta and across Western Canada,” said Matt Jones, Minister of Hospital and Surgical Health Services. “A new, stand-alone Stollery Children’s Hospital will ensure children receive world-class care in a modern facility designed to meet their unique needs.”
The government began investing in early planning in 2021, contributing $1 million matched by the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation. Budget 2025 added another $11 million over three years to advance planning and design. Work is now underway to determine the facility’s service, space and infrastructure requirements, with the planning phase expected to wrap up in 2026.
Healthcare leaders say the new facility will expand opportunities for clinical innovation, research and training.
“This is welcome news, not just for Albertan children and families but also for healthcare professionals and researchers,” said Dr. Todd Alexander, chair of the University of Alberta’s Department of Pediatrics. “A new, dedicated space will allow for new technologies, increased specialized care, and further teaching opportunities.”
The Stollery is the second-largest pediatric hospital in Canada by bed count, behind Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children. It treats roughly 300,000 children each year, including about 55,000 emergency visits and 12,000 surgeries.