Groundbreaking for a new development has become routine in Cranberry Township over the past decade or so. But last week’s groundbreaking for an ice hockey and sports medicine complex being built by UPMC with the Pittsburgh Penguins as headline tenant and major attraction was anything but routine.

The UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex will highlight hockey and sports medicine and is being hailed as the first of its kind in the United States. It’s being modeled after the UMPC sports performance complex on the South Side of Pittsburgh that’s used by the Pittsburgh Steelers and University of Pittsburgh and also offers extensive sports medicine and sports performance services.

The location of the complex was shifted during the summer to a site very close to the intersection of I-79 and Route 228. The new site will offer better visibility and possibly better access for traffic.

The $70 million complex will feature two ice rinks, one for the Penguins to use for practice when the Consol Energy Center downtown is not available and another rink for public skating, youth hockey development and tournaments. In addition, UPMC will develop sports medicine clinics staffed with doctors and specializing in concussion treatment, imaging, physical therapy and sports performance training. The expected world-class sports medicine could very well attract national or even worldwide attention, especially given the increased attention on the dangers and long term impact of concussions.

Developed in five stages, construction of the ice rinks and medical facilities, taking up about 190,000 square feet, will come first. Following that, attention will shift to construction of another 875,000 of space over five buildings featuring retail space, office space, restaurant space and a 100-room hotel. The site design will not be a typical strip mall or even corporate campus. The design features a central roundabout, or traffic circle, with a fountain in the center.

Though focused on hockey players, the sports medicine and concussion clinics could attract athletes from other sports. And it could attract athletes from across the country and around the world, given the name recognition and reputation of both UPMC and Mario Lemieux.

There has also been ongoing talk about building an underpass that goes under Rt. 228 and provides easier access to the facility and nearby retail development.

The price tag, mixed-use menu and physical size of the UPMC/Penguins project is remarkable by any measure. But the additional features of sports medicine treatment facilities and the aesthetics of the design suggests the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, expected to be open in 2015, will be a major draw for Cranberry Township. People will come to watch the Penguins practice, to skate, to watch high school hockey contests, and for concussion treatment and sports performance work. Those services, particularly the concussion treatment and sports performance improvement work could attract people from across the United States and around the world.

It’s a big deal, a very big deal.