The University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora unveiled expansion plans in May that include construction of a $400-million, 12-story patient tower.

The hospital will also spend $20 million to expand the University of Colorado Cancer Center to meet a substantial increase in demand for hospital services.

UCH�s hospital expansion will create a 660,000-sq-ft building dedicated to inpatient and emergency care and renovate 60,000 sq ft of existing space. The new tower will house a four-story, critical-care wing containing a new emergency department, a cardiac and vascular center, and a six-story parking garage.

Cannon Designs of St. Louis designed the first phase of the project. The new building is slated to open in 2013.