Children's hospital announces plan for $740M expansion

COLUMBUS (AP) -- Patients at Children's Hospital will have private rooms with a bed and desk for parents after a $740 million expansion project.
The seven-year project announced Wednesday will create about 1,160 jobs and add 1 million square feet, including a new main hospital, two research buildings and a parking garage.
There will be areas where parents can cook a meal, do laundry, exercise and log onto the Internet if their children are staying in the hospital for an extended period.
The hospital is the fifth-largest free-standing children's hospital -- based on number of patient beds -- in the United States.
Most of the project money -- about $430 million -- will be used to build the buildings. About $237 million will be used to update equipment and computers and improve technology to automate patient records. And nearly $74 million will be used to recruit doctors, nurses and researchers.