Mount St. Joseph University is moving its Physician Assistant Program out of its main campus classrooms and into a renovated storefront at Delhi Towne Square, in a $2.5 million investment that university and township leaders announced Friday. The new facility, expected to open in January 2028, will occupy roughly 7,000 square feet about 1.5 miles from the Mount's main campus and will include classrooms, clinical examination rooms, simulation suites, and student study and collaboration space.
The university and Delhi Township framed the project as a new home for the graduate program, according to Mount St. Joseph University. Per the Catholic university, founded in 1920 and based in Delhi Township, the Physician Assistant Program is a full-time, 27-month course of study leading to a master's degree, as outlined in the program's student handbook. That same handbook lists the program's next accreditation validation review with the ARC-PA as approximately scheduled for March 2032.
As reported by WKRC, the new site will give the program dedicated space of its own, and the current campus area it vacates will become available for other university needs. The station also reports that the teaching facility could eventually accommodate future enrollment growth, though that would require approval from the program's accreditor. BHDP Architecture will work with program faculty and university representatives to finish the design, and the Mount has said initial conceptual plans are already in place.
Lease Terms and Local Reaction
The project will run under an initial 10-year lease with an option to extend for another decade, the station's report notes, though the university and township did not announce the lease's financial terms. Delhi Township Trustee Board Chair Mike Davis called the project a significant win for the community, according to the same account, and said the university's use of remaining tenant space at the square will bring activity to the town center while creating long-term revenue for the township.
Mount St. Joseph University President H. James Williams said the investment is intended to expand student opportunities and support regional health care workforce needs, per the station's report. That workforce framing lines up with broader national trends: physician associate supply grew 8.7 percent annually between 2016 and 2023, according to Health Affairs, with growth expected to slow to 5.6 percent annually through 2030. The same research notes that the number of physician assistant graduates grew 69 percent between 2014 and 2023, and that by 2030 the combined ranks of nurse practitioners and physician associates are projected to approach the number of physicians nationwide.
A Growing Town Center on Cincinnati's West Side
Delhi Towne Square opened in 2024 as part of what Delhi Township has described as plans to build the site into a civic and commercial center. The development already includes 180 apartments, the Delhi Athletic Club, the Delhi Event Center, township offices, preschool classrooms for the Oak Hills Local School District, and the Lawn, a shared outdoor space with a performance stage. According to FOX19, the overall development represents a $70 million project, described as the biggest investment in the township's history.
The square has been described as a mixed-use public-private partnership between Delhi Township, Oak Hills Schools and property management company PLK, per WCPO. That outlet has reported the development's 180 apartments as fully leased, with rents ranging from $1,200 to $2,100. Soapbox Media has separately described Delhi Towne Square as a mixed-use development that includes housing, a recreation center, public space and a preschool.
WKRC's report notes that the Mount's move will add university students, faculty and staff to the square once the Physician Assistant Program relocates in 2028. For Delhi Township, the arrangement pairs an established residential and recreational hub with a dedicated higher-education tenant, extending a build-out that began with apartments and civic space into graduate health care training.
