POCATELLO — In what is being called the first of multiple developments coming to the Northgate project north of Pocatello, the Portneuf Health Trust announced on Thursday that it has purchased 20 acres of land at the site to build a medical campus.

Shaun Menchaca, CEO of Portneuf Health Trust, said his organization is working with physician partners at Portneuf Medical Center to master plan the campus and determine what health care services will be offered. He said the construction on the campus will begin next summer with the goal to start offering some services the following winter.

The medical campus will be owned by the Portneuf Health Trust, but operated by the Portneuf Medical Center.

The amount the health trust paid for the 20 acres has not been released. It is unknown how many jobs the new medical campus will bring to the area.

The Northgate project is being called one of the largest public-private partnerships in the state, and it is expected to bring a tidal wave of high-paying jobs and business and residential development to the region.

The project involves building an interchange on Interstate 15 and extending Siphon Road and Olympus Drive, which is expected to be completed by October 2018. The groundbreaking for the interchange was held in September.

The project partnerships include the cities of Pocatello and Chubbuck, Bannock County, the Idaho Transportation Department, Portneuf Development and Millenial Development.

Both Menchaca and Michael Jaglowski, a developer with Portneuf Development, said that the partnership between Northgate developers and the Portneuf Health Trust is crucial due to both organizations’ focus on physical activity and improving public health.

The Northgate project is expected to be designed with walkability and bikeability in mind. The walking and biking trails to be constructed at Northgate will connect multiple soon-to-be-constructed facilities, including a technical park with an 8,000-plus job capacity, restaurants, a large outdoor shopping mall and new high-tech residences.

“It’s a place where you can park your car and walk everywhere,” Jaglowski said.

Menchaca said the Portneuf Health Trust is excited to work with the Northgate developers to encourage and help provide guidance in the creation of Northgate’s walking and biking trails, with the goal that they will be connected to the nearby Portneuf Wellness Complex, the Portneuf Medical Center and other walkways across the Gate City.

“We are very excited to partner with the Northgate developers to provide the exclusive health and medical campus to the community,” Menchaca said in a news release. “The developers and our organization both believe that designing the infrastructure to walk, bike and be active creates a healthier community.”