ST. PAUL (AP) &045; The Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly voted to make state Health Department officials pick which of three health providers should build a new hospital in Maple Grove. It would be the biggest expansion of hospital beds in Minnesota in 21 years.

That puts the Senate at odds with the House, which last month overwhelmingly approved a bill that would let North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale build the new facility. A conference committee will have to work out a compromise.

The issue pits two Maple Grove Republicans, Sen. Warren Limmer and Rep. Kurt Zellers, against each other. Limmer’s bill passed the Senate 62-4. Zellers’ version got a 126-5 vote in the House.

Limmer said his proposal would let health experts make the call. &uot;This bill avoids 201 legislators selecting a corporation from the floor of the Legislature,&uot; he said.

But Zellers said Maple Grove and surrounding communities favor North Memorial, and the selection criteria in Limmer’s bill would give short shrift to priorities in the fast-growing area, including emergency services and obstetric and pediatric care.

Lawmakers have been lobbied heavily as North Memorial, Fairview Health Services and the Tri-Care partnership of Allina Hospitals and Clinics, Park Nicollet Health Services and Children’s Hospitals and Clinics vie for the project.