The Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi will become the state's second field hospital to treat the overflow of COVID-19 patients.

The 250,000-square-foot facility on Grand River Road off I-96, which typically plays host to bridal and boat shows, will accommodate up to 1,000 patients, the Michigan State Police said in a press release.

"This is more good news for Michiganders in our fight against COVID-19," Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement. "Having access to more medical facilities and more space for health care professionals to perform their life saving work means we are more able to slow the spread of COVID-19. Fighting this virus is going to take all of us working together as Michiganders, and I want to thank everyone who has stepped up to volunteer at a health care facility or donate blood, money, or medical supplies. We will get through this."

The state of Michigan has signed a six-month lease totaling $1.32 million monthly for 250,000 square feet of exhibition space at Suburban Collection Showplace, said Caleb Buhs, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has evaluated at least a dozen other sites for construction of temporary overflow hospitals in Southeast Michigan, including Oakland University in Rochester and the Lawrence Technological University in Southfield along with the Showplace in Novi, according to Oakland County officials.

The Army Corps is already constructing a 900-bed overflow field hospital inside TCF Center in downtown Detroit to accommodate non-critically ill COVID-19 patients.

However, the state is facing a shortage of nurses and doctors to staff the field hospitals already, before they are even open.

Whitmer on Sunday signed an executive order loosening restrictions on physicians and other health care providers and the governor's office has launched an initiative to get volunteers for a war-like response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The state is also asking medical professionals to come out of retirement or shift from specialty clinics to the front line of the worsening pandemic.

Between 600 to 700 health care workers at Henry Ford Health System, a six-hospital health care system based in Detroit, have tested positive for COVID-19, said a top health system doctor Monday.

As of Monday, Michigan had more than 17,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 727 deaths, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Crain's Senior Editor Chad Livengood contributed to this article.