Architect to respect Italian stylings on exterior
of Yakima Valley Farm Workers’ newest clinic

The

Tri-Cities’ newest health clinic will respect design standards of the Port

of  Kennewick’s neighborhood on the

outside. 

On

the inside, the newest Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic will offer

state-of-the-art medical services to its patients. 

The

nonprofit broke ground this month on its latest location. The Miramar Health

Center project is being built on a five-acre parcel bordering the Port of

Kennewick’s Vista Field redevelopment project. 

The

clinic isn’t within the Vista Field neighborhood, but its architects say

they’re making a good-faith effort to ensure

the 29,000-square-foot building blends into the

neighborhood. 

With

Miramar Health Clinic, Yakima Valley Farm Workers continues its mission to

deliver medical and dental services to patients of all incomes.  

It

will serve those with – and without – insurance. 

But

first, it must be built.  

For

that, Yakima Valley hired The Neenan Co., a design-build firm based

in Fort Collins, Colorado.  

Neenan has designed

and built medical facilities throughout the Northwest.  

Its

projects in Washington include the Columbia Basin Health Association’s

Othello clinic and three Vancouver clinics.  

Neenan

assigned a 12-person team to oversee the Kennewick project. It

expects to deliver the project to its client in about a year. 

 Future proofing 

“We

strive to design and construct durable buildings that are comfortable and easy

for patients to find their way around,” said Whitney Churchill, senior design

manager. 

Churchill said

the team visited Kennewick for inspiration before it

developed the exterior appearance. 

That

included reviewing the design standards the Port of Kennewick adopted for Vista

Field.  

The

port’s mixed-use project will have the feel of an Italian village and

pedestrian-friendly amenities. 

For

the clinic, that means a pedestrian-scale building.

While

Vista Field is informing the exterior appearance, the interior

is purely practical. 

Neenan is creating

a design with change in mind. 

“One

of the biggest challenges we face in this industry is future-proofing,” Churchill said.  

“We

want to hand over a building that will be beautiful, efficient and useful for

50 or more years. This can be tricky given the ever-changing landscape of

technology.” 

 White roof, native plants 

Miramar

does not have sustainability targets such as the U.S. Green Building Council’s

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, standards. But it does

have green touches. 

It

meets energy code and will have white roofing materials and native plants in

the landscape. 

“We

certainly consider the natural environment in each of our

projects,” Churchill said. 

The

building is divided between medical practices (32 percent), administrative

and office (20 percent), future building out (20 percent), dental (12 percent),

pharmacy (5 percent) and laboratory (2 percent). 

 Opens in 2021 

Miramar Clinic

opens in early 2021 at 6335 Rio Grande Ave., near Lawrence Scott

Park and the Kennewick Chuck E. Cheese restaurant. 

Yakima

Valley Farm Workers bought the Kennewick property last spring, paying $1.9

million for the undeveloped site northwest of the now-closed Vista Field

runway.  

The

project was temporarily held up by the port, which sold the land more than

a decade ago. 

The

port’s commissioners considered exercising a buy-back clause to

bring it back into the Vista Field planning area. 

The

move would have preempted the clinic project. 

The

port backed off after learning Yakima Valley Farm Workers

intended to install a modern clinic in the neighborhood. 

Miramar expects to

employ 70, including doctors, dentists and pharmacists, to serve patients.  

The clinic targets the estimated 39,000

low-income Tri-Citians who are not currently served by a community health

center.