APEX, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s first standalone children’s hospital will be built in a bedroom community near the state capital, the project’s health systems announced Thursday, creating a campus estimated to bring 8,000 jobs to the area.

A partnership between UNC Health and Duke Health is finalizing a deal to buy at least 200 acres in Apex — a critical step in its plans to build the state’s first standalone children’s hospital, people familiar with the negotiations told WRAL News.

The UNC Health and Duke Health systems are partnering together to create North Carolina’s Children’s Health campus.