January 14, 2015, 4:49 PM Last updated: Wednesday, January 14, 2015, 11:27 PM

RECORD FILE PHOTO

Roches exit from Clifton and Nutley

The first private medical school in New Jersey in 50 years is expected to open in 2017 at the former Hoffmann-La Roche site in Clifton and Nutley under a partnership between Seton Hall University and the parent company of Hackensack University Medical Center.

Officials from both institutions, who confirmed their alliance Wednesday, said they plan to make a formal announcement Thursday morning.

The medical school, as yet unnamed, is being touted as an economic boost and a remedy for the shortage of physicians in New Jersey, estimated to reach 2,400 by 2020. Officials hope the school will serve as an anchor at the empty site, attracting biomedical and research companies and high-paying jobs to the 116-acre campus.

We are excited to be taking this next step with Seton Hall University, said Robert C. Garrett, president and CEO of Hackensack University Health Network. Our academic reputations, combined with our clinical expertise, will guarantee the establishment of a world-class academic institution in the Garden State.

Hospitals in Hackensacks network, the states largest, will serve as the primary clinical teaching sites for the school, which officials hope will elevate a leading regional medical center into the next tier a top academic health care institution. For Seton Hall, a Catholic university in South Orange established nearly 160 years ago, it is an opportunity to expand its graduate level programs, which already include law, business and nursing.

The new medical school would take over two buildings at the empty site. Architects are at work to redesign some of the 500,000 square feet the school is leasing to accommodate labs, students, staff and space for research and development. Funding for the school is likely to include grants and low-interest loans from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, Hackensack officials said.

Starting a new medical school will be daunting, experts say. It could take up to $30 million to launch the first class, experts estimated, and accreditation is a rigorous multiyear process.

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Private medical school planned for former Hoffmann-LaRoche site in Nutley, Clifton