A new primary care center for Alaska Native and American Indian people in the Valley will provide comprehensive health care to one of Alaska's fastest-growing communities.
The ground-breaking ceremony for the project was held Tuesday, after years of planning an expansion to the current clinic. The new Wasilla facility will be about 90,000 square feet and will provide more than 200 full-time jobs.
The project is a joint venture between the Southcentral Foundation, the Knik and Chickaloon tribes, Indian Health Services, and the U.S.D.A rural development, who provided the $50 million loan to build the facility.
The Valley Native Primary Care Center will provide a list of health care services that include primary care, dental, behavioral health, optometry, health education and wellness. According to the Southcentral Foundation, planning for the project began more than a decade ago and Tuesday's ground-breaking ceremony was also a celebration of years of hard work and perseverance.
"It is monumental in this way also, not just building a building, but the collaboration between two federally-recognized tribes in this area, Knik and Chickaloon, and the Southcentral Foundation's organization forming a joint-operating board to manage and operate this facility out here," said Katherine Gottlieb, President and CEO of Southcentral Foundation.
Construction of the new center is scheduled to be completed by September 2012, with the facility opening in October 2012.
