The Journey

In the late 80's, Saturn Corporation built a manufacturing facility that would change the demographics and landscape of Spring Hill, Tennessee forever.

A quiet town that had one small grocery store, no pizza delivery service and required that residents travel north (to Franklin) or south (to Columbia) for most of their essential necessities, suddenly found the landscape of its community developing rapidly.

The new Saturn facility sparked tremendous growth in Spring Hill and with that growth, came extensive commercial and residential development.

Today, the Spring Hill community is home to over 8,000 households and is comprised of young professionals, families and retirees.

Population overview:

• In 2000, the US census indicated that Spring Hill had an approximate population of 7,000.
• In 2005, the US special census indicated that number grew to 17,235.
• The US census released in May of 2007 indicated Spring Hill's population had grown to over 25,000.
• It is expected that more than 60,000 people will live in Spring Hill and Thompson's Station by 2010.

Because of its appealing and growing demographic, national corporate chains began to identify Spring Hill as an ideal location to break ground and open retail outlet stores. Home Depot, Lowes, Target, Kohls, Starbucks, Publix, Kroger and others recognized that Spring Hill's consistent and expansive growth could support their popular chains.

Proactive Planning for Spring Hill residents:

It became clear that the growth trend would continue and in 2005, City officials began to deliberate over significant infrastructure enhancements necessary to accommodate the current and future growth within the City.

In addition to water and sewer enhancements and other infrastructure needs, officials began to discuss emergency healthcare accessibility for its young and aging demographic. Because of the rapid growth, both residentially and commercially, drive times north and south began to significantly increase. Traffic delays were a regular occurrence for commuters throughout the day, especially within peak commuting hours.

TriStar Health System (HCA)

In early 2005, City officials approached TriStar Health System (HCA) to build a new 56 bed, full service hospital to serve the needs of the area's growing population.

TriStar Health System studied the area extensively and agreed the current and anticipated growth in the area indicated a need for a new hospital. In March of 2006, TriStar applied for a certificate of need (CON) from the State of Tennessee. The proposed new 56 bed hospital would have a 24-hour emergency department and offer inpatient services, magnetic resonance imaging, cardiology, general surgery, outpatient surgery, obstetrics, cancer care, intensive care and diagnostic services.

The CON application process is governed by the Health Services Development Agency (HSDA) and this Agency is responsible for regulating the health care industry in Tennessee through the certificate of need Program. The CON program assures that health care projects are accomplished in an orderly, economical manner, consistent with the development of adequate and effective healthcare for the people of Tennessee.

In July of 2006 after judicious review, the HSDA, with a nearly unanimous vote of 7-1, believed there was a need for a hospital in Spring Hill and granted TriStar Health System the right to build the proposed 56 bed hospital in Northern Maury county. Two neighboring hospitals, Williamson Medical Center (WMC) north of Spring Hill and Maury Regional Hospital (MRH) located south of Spring Hill, aligned to oppose the CON application.

As a result of that opposition, residents within both Maury and Williamson counties aligned and the Citizens For Spring Hill Hospital (CFSHH) was formed.

After the HSDA granted the CON for the Spring Hill Hospital, WMC and MRH filed an appeal of that decision with the courts, ultimately delaying the ground breaking of the Spring Hill Hospital. Click here for a complete timeline of the journey for the Spring Hill Hospital.