A Pasco-based healthcare system is preparing to move one of its Kennewick clinics into a bigger space.

A $4.8 million building remodel is currently underway at 2810 W. Clearwater Ave. just off of Ely Street. Once a multi-tenant office space, the two-story building is set to become Tri-Cities Community Health’s latest clinic. 

It’s only a block away from the organization’s current clinic at 3810 W. Clearwater Ave., the only one of TCCH’s seven clinics that’s still in a leased space. 

Kristy Needham, CEO of Tri-Cities Community Health

By the time the lease ends on Jan. 31, 2027, the new space should be up and running, said Kristy Needham, TCCH’s CEO. It will be about three times as large as the current clinic and will double the number of primary care providers.  

New clinic

TCCH bought the building at 2810 W. Clearwater Ave. from PMI Holdings LLC in June 2025 for $3.3 million. According to property records, it was originally built in 1979. The office building was slated for both an exterior and interior remodel in 2024, led by PMI Holdings. 

The 14,259-square-foot space will include exam rooms, a pharmacy, a lab and support spaces, according to a building permit filed with the city of Kennewick. No additional square footage will be added to the building’s footprint. 

The clinic will add four more primary care providers for a total of eight, and more staff will come on, including pharmacists, medical assistants and front office workers. 

Needham said TCCH currently has 320 staff across all locations, and the new building’s pharmacy will be the organization’s fourth.

It’s been about seven years since TCCH has built a new clinic, she said. By shifting from a leased space to one owned by TCCH, “we can let our patients know we’ll be here for the long term,” Needham said. 

Community services

Tri-Cities Community Health was founded in 1982 by two women who saw the needs of migrant and farm workers in the community, Needham said. Since then, Tri-Cities Community Health has grown, becoming a Federally Qualified Health Center in the 1990s. 

That designation means that TCCH receives federal funding that helps the organization care for the uninsured and underinsured, Needham said. 

“The purpose of community health centers is to try to fit as much under our roof as possible so that our patients don’t have to go outside our four walls,” she said. 

Services include primary care, with family practice, internal medicine and pediatrics; OB/GYN services; vision care and dental clinics; behavioral health; and pharmacies. 

Needham said that the likelihood of patients following up after a provider visit is low, so TCCH tries to provide everything their patients need in one place. 

Pharmacists trained in chronic diseases, like diabetes and hypertension, can help patients between doctor’s appointments. Transportation and translation services are provided, as well as free delivery at all of TCCH’s pharmacies. 

The organization also has community healthcare workers who help connect patients to resources for other needs, such as housing, food, clothing or other concerns.  

Primary care shortage

Like other clinics in the region, TCCH has felt the burden of a shortage of primary care providers. 

The Tri-Cities is considered a medically underserved area, meaning that the ratio of primary care providers to residents is below the national average, Needham said. “The state of Washington in particular needs about 246 more primary care providers to reach what they consider a good level, and then here in the Tri-Cities, we’re feeling that crunch even more,” she said. 

Tri-Cities Community Health is “just trying to fill that space, which is what we’re supposed to do as a community health center,” she said.