The Chilton County Health Care Authority and St. Vincent’s Health System have announced a formal agreement for St. Vincent’s to operate the under-construction hospital in Chilton County.

Preliminary agreements had been in place between SVHS and the Health Care Authority, which is appointed by the Chilton County Commission to further the health-related interests of residents.

St. Vincent’s worked closely with county officials during the application for a state-issued Certificate of Need, design of the hospital and other steps, Authority Spokesman Sibley Reynolds said.

The new agreement calls for St. Vincent’s to operate the 30-bed facility that should open in fall 2016 and include a 24/7 emergency department, surgical services, diagnostics, inpatient care, intensive care and other services, according to a press release from SVHS.

“We are excited to be a part of bringing a hospital back to Chilton County,” Neeysa Biddle, Birmingham Market Leader for St. Vincent’s Health System and Ascension Health Senior Vice President, said in the release. “This agreement, and our previous work, represents a true partnership with the community and its leaders.

“Our commitment is to offer quality services that improve the health of those not only within our facility, but across the entire community. Working with local providers and supported by our regional network of services and Ascension Health, we believe this partnership gives us the ability to make a significant impact on the health of the residents of Chilton and surrounding counties.”

St. Vincent’s Health System is a member of Ascension, the nation’s largest Catholic and non-profit health system.

The operation would be called St. Vincent’s Chilton.

The agreement calls for STVHS to operate the new hospital for 29 years.

The county will maintain ownership of the facility, as construction is being funded through a 1-cent sales tax increase approved by Chilton County voters.

“We are thrilled and pleased to have St. Vincent’s here, and look forward to a long-term, successful agreement,” Allen Payton, chairman of the Chilton County Health Care Authority, said in the release. “We have been together through the planning process; it is like we held hands, dated, got engaged and now we are married. We are eager to move forward with the hospital, which is an important part of attracting new companies with good-paying jobs to the county.”

St. Vincent’s will work with local physicians and healthcare providers as operational planning begins, according to the release.

For the past several years, SVHS and the Authority, along with other local leaders, have worked to develop a strategic plan to ensure there is sustainable healthcare in Chilton County.