MURRIETA —— A group of doctors that wants to build a comprehensive, independent hospital has agreed to buy 25 acres in northern Murrieta, its spokesman said Tuesday.

The parcel, on Antelope Road about a mile north of Clinton Keith Road, is close to Interstate 215, and is within an area known as Golden City, Dr. John Piconi said. It would be the second hospital in the city and, if everything goes according to plan, could be open in three years, he said.

To gain approval from the city, the group would likely need an amendment to the Golden City specific plan, a blueprint for the area that will contain 650 homes and some businesses, and a conditional use permit, City Manager Lori Moss said. The approval process could take about six to nine months after an application is submitted, Moss said.

Piconi and the developers involved with the project met with Murrieta officials Monday. The group may ask for some exceptions to the city's requirements, Piconi said.

Unlike a hospital planned for southern Temecula by Southwest Healthcare System, which would be its third in the area, the property coveted by the doctors' group is not near any houses at this time. Some neighbors of the Temecula proposal object to towers of five and six stories blocking their views.

An independent hospital is important for the area so residents have more hospital services and more options, said Piconi, a retired urologist who practiced in Southwest Riverside County and northern San Diego County for 30 years. Even with three other hospitals in the area, 50 to 60 percent of patients still head outside the region for hospital care, he said.

The proposed hospital would not be for-profit. Southwest's Inland Valley and Rancho Springs medical centers are for-profit hospitals; Menifee Valley Medical Center in Sun City is part of a nonprofit public hospital district based in Hemet.

"If we put up a quality hospital that the physicians own, we think we can decrease the outmigration because of the improvement in quality and availability," he said.

The group, which consists of independent physicians from as far away as Corona and Fallbrook, would like to build a comprehensive medical complex, including a hospital with 60 to 80 beds and medical office buildings that would offer services such as lab tests and x-rays, Piconi said. The hospital would provide complete care, including emergency, neonatal and intensive care, and cardiovascular intervention.

The property, owned by Sun Cal, which is developing Golden City, is in a convenient location for Southwest County residents and provides good access because it is near the interstate, Piconi said. The hospital would be at the northeast corner of Antelope and Baxter Road, next to a temporary fire station that will be moved within the same area when Baxter is realigned to the south, Planning Director Jack McGee said.

Before the doctors' group makes the purchase final, Sun Cal would have to put in utilities and roads, which it has agreed to do, Piconi said. The doctors' group is working with its own developer as well, Surgical Development Partners of Nashville.

The price tag for the hospital would probably be between $40 million and $80 million, he added. More than 50 doctors have given their financial support to the project and the group expects to have a package ready for potential investors, known as a private placement offering, by the end of the month, Piconi said.

"We're very excited we've come this far," he said. "The project started in March with minimal physician participation and in six months, we're now ready to go forward."

Murrieta Mayor Warnie Enochs said he would welcome another hospital in the city, especially one that could provide more specialized services.

"The care has been lacking in the past for heart transplants (and) major heart attacks," he said. "We've been behind because our population grew so fast and our hospitals couldn't keep up. The more facilities the better."

Contact staff writer Deirdre Newman at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2623, or dnewman@californian.com.