The Department of Veterans Affairs will break ground at 11 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, on a new $48.2 million outpatient clinic at 3811 Plaza Way, across from Trios Southridge Hospital, according to the Tri-Cities Business News. The ceremony is open to veterans, their families and the public, with regional VA staff and state and local officials expected to attend.
The project caps more than a decade of local lobbying for a bigger VA presence in the Tri-Cities, according to The Center Square. Funding was authorized in August 2022 under the Honoring Our PACT Act, after Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside, announced the $48.2 million allocation, Apple Valley News Now reported.
From Vista Field to Plaza Way
The VA considered several sites before settling on Plaza Way, including Vista Field and a parcel on Bob Olson Parkway, according to Tri-Cities Business News. The agency ultimately bought the nearly 12-acre Southridge property for $13.5 million, while construction alone is estimated at $35 million, The Center Square reported via Yahoo News. The gap is covered by the broader federal authorization and a 20-year lease agreement with developer JTW Development LLC valued at more than $209 million, according to Brushwood Media Network.
The city of Kennewick cleared a key hurdle in June, issuing a SEPA determination of non-significance for the project, the Tri-City Herald reported via AOL. A separate SEPA filing shows the project calls for up to 700 parking spaces on the site, according to NBC Right Now.
What the new clinic replaces
The facility will replace the VA's current, aging clinic inside the Richland Federal Building at 825 Jadwin Ave., according to Elkhorn Media Group and NBC Right Now. The new two-story building is planned to run somewhere between roughly 100,000 and 130,000 square feet — reports vary on the exact figure — and will house primary care, mental health services, a pharmacy, radiology, physical therapy and dental care, plus optometry, audiology, prosthetics and lab services, Elkhorn Media reported. The site will also support supportive housing and home-based primary care programs for veterans who need in-home visits.
That expanded list of services matters because many local veterans currently have to drive to Walla Walla or Spokane VA facilities, or pay for care at civilian hospitals, for treatment not available here now, according to Everett Post. Shane Thorson, a Tri-Cities veteran advocate, told The Center Square the goal is to "bring the healthcare to the veteran instead of continually making the veteran travel to the healthcare."
Kristopher Dahir, executive director of the Columbia Basin Veterans Center, estimated the Tri-Cities area has 20,000 to 25,000 veterans, with as many as 46,000 living within a 75-mile radius, according to The Center Square. "It's about respect," Dahir said.
Staffing and timeline
Once open, the clinic is expected to employ about 231 full-time workers, including nearly 50 doctors and dentists, according to NBC Right Now and Tri-Cities Business News. Construction is set to begin following Thursday's ceremony, with the clinic projected to open in early 2029, Elkhorn Media reported.
Leaders at the Jonathan M. Wainwright Memorial VA, which oversees the Tri-Cities clinic, said in a statement carried by Tri-Cities Business News that "this groundbreaking marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for VA health care in the Tri-Cities area." In a separate statement to Elkhorn Media, VA leadership said "expanding into a larger, modern facility means better access, more services, and improved health outcomes for the veterans we proudly serve."
Kennewick City Manager Erin Erdman said in a statement to Tri-Cities Business News that the city is glad "we will be able to provide specialized care for our local veterans" closer to home.
No list of attending officials has been confirmed ahead of Thursday's ceremony. Veterans and residents who want details on the project or the groundbreaking can watch for updates from the VA's regional public affairs office in the days before the event.
