Proponents of a $70 million hospital and medical facility for West Maui said they will file for a certificate of need from the state by the end of February and go before the Maui County Council for land use approvals in coming months as part of their efforts to build a 14.9-acre medical facility in Lahaina.

The developers yesterday met with the State Health Planning and Development Agency to discuss criteria they need to meet in submitting an application. The proposal includes a 25-bed acute-care hospital, a 40-bed skilled nursing facility, 40 assisted living units for senior citizens and an outpatient clinic.

"It is our intent to meet or exceed the requirements," said Brian Hoyle, a healthcare developer who has signed an agreement with the West Maui Improvement Foundation to build the hospital.

The West Maui Improvement Foundation has pushed for eight years for a second emergency hospital on Maui. It says its effort is being supported by the Lingle administration, Maui Mayor Charmaine Tavares, state Sen. Roz Baker and others. The foundation also notes that the Maui Health Care Task Force has identified establishing a West Maui hospital as a top priority.

The proponents say transport times from West Maui to Maui Memorial Medical Center in Wailuku can take more than an hour — something that has proven deadly for some gravely ill patients.

"This is an urgent matter of necessity," said Joe Pluta, president of West Maui Improvement Foundation.

That need is one reason why the Maui County Council is fast-tracking its consideration of a community plan amendment, district boundary amendment and zoning needed for the project, Pluta said. He said the measures should go before the council's land use committee on March 12 and the entire council later that month or by early April.

The effort comes after another unaffiliated group failed to win a certificate of need for a 150-bed hospital in Kihei last year. The health planning agency, charged with monitoring whether new medical services and facilities meet state priorities or threaten existing services, turned down the developers of the Malulani Health & Medical Center for failing to meet several criteria.

Those included proving that there would be enough nurses, doctors and other staff to work at the $212 million facility. Questions were also raised about how competition from the proposed facility would affect Maui Memorial Medical Center, a 231-bed hospital.

Hoyle said there are plans to hire local staff for the proposed West Maui Hospital and to bring in outside personnel, including an orthopedic surgeon, only if no one is available on Maui. Housing would be provided for some of these workers.

Maui Memorial fought Malulani Health's proposal but hasn't indicated its position on the West Maui project.

"We are very interested in seeing that the community's needs are met with regards to healthcare in West Maui, however we haven't seen their final plans so it would be premature for us to take a position at this point," Maui Memorial Chief Executive Officer Wesley P. Lo said in an e-mailed statement.

Hoyle, who is a principal in California-based healthcare developer Southwest Health Group, said the West Maui hospital will be privately funded. Hoyle said he will provide the equity capital and that either bank funding or investors will provide the remainder of the financing.

Reach Greg Wiles at gwiles@honoluluadvertiser.com.