Southeast Orthopedic Specialists gets $1.8M permit for MRI clinic

Southeast Orthopedic Specialists gets $1.8M permit for MRI clinic (Courtesy of the Jacksonville Business Journal) — A health care provider in St. Augustine recently received a permit to continue part of its major construction project.

St. Johns County issued a permit Tuesday for a $1.8 million MRI center in the Southeast Orthopedic Specialists building at 45 Groover Loop.

The interior build-out will encompass 3,790 square feet.

The contractor is Batson-Cook Company of Jacksonville.

The Jacksonville-based Southeast Orthopedic Specialists opened a new 14,500-square-foot clinic earlier this year. It’s part of a larger 37,000-square-foot construction project that is expected to be fully completed in August.

The building is at 45 Groover Loop near the Borland Groover medical center and the University of St. Augustine campus — which is the old St. Augustine Record building.

In addition to the imaging center, Southeast Orthopedics plans to open the St. Augustine Ambulatory Surgery Center in August.

When fully operational, it is projected that more than 26,000 patients per year will be treated at the facility, according to a release.

Over the years, Southeast Orthopedic Specialists has achieved significant growth in Northeast Florida. In 2019, SOS partnered with Arizona-based HOPCo and its extensive integrated care network.

Orthopaedic Associates of St. Augustine and Southeast Orthopedic Specialists partnered in October 2021 and began operating under the Southeast Orthopedic Specialists’ name as of April 1, 2022.

“Our vision for the future is quickly taking shape, and we couldn’t be more excited that we can offer so many services at this one location,” said Donnie Romine, CEO of Southeast Orthopedic Specialists and president of Healthcare Outcomes Performance Company Southeast Specialty Care Network, in a December 2024 release.