CEO Cory Nelson shared with the Sioux Center City Council at its meeting Nov. 4 that the organization has launched its Growing Community capital campaign for its estimated $33 million project to add on to its family medicine and specialty clinics, to expand its Senior Living campus and to build a new home medical equipment and occupational/employee health building.
“Sioux Center is a growing, vibrant community encompassing residents across the entire life span,” Nelson said. “One reason the community is so vibrant and continues to grow is that the people stay in our community, invest in our community and remain connection to the community throughout their entire lives. It’s important for Sioux Center to have a full continuum of options available for individuals as their needs change throughout their lives. Providing high-quality medical care, independent and assisted living options and nursing home care are all part of that continuum.”
Nelson said approval came Nov. 4 on Sioux Center Health’s USDA loan at 3 percent for $25 million toward the project. Sioux Center Health’s capital campaign seeks to raise $6 million for the project as well as with the remaining $2 million to be covered with additional bank loans.
Construction for all projects is planned to be complete in 2022.
Sioux Center Health seeks to break ground first on a memory care facility as Nelson said that’s where Sioux Center Health’s biggest waiting list is. The new 16-room assisted living memory care facility will be located on the northwest section of the Senior Living campus — the name for the property on which Royale Meadows and Crown Pointe sit.
The memory care facility will include a dining room, an enclosed private outdoor courtyard, activity and sensory stations as well as have specialty care of those with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.
Another portion of construction is to remodel what is the existing Crown Pointe entrance to be the main entrance for the Senior Living campus. The remodel will include removing the large staircase in the entry way as well as raise up the overhead cover at the front door to allow an ambulance to park at the front door, which it can’t do currently.
A third portion of construction includes developing a Main Street area between the existing Crown Pointe and Royale Meadows facilities that will include a welcome center, community center, general store, a cafe, salon and spa, social club, media center and newsstand, chapel, an ATM, post office, outdoor courtyard with gazebo and walking paths, dining room and a large area to gather for family and friends.
Nelson said natural lighting is being incorporated into the design as well as space to grow for adding other activities in the future.
A fourth part involves adding 32 skilled nursing rooms on the north side of Royale Meadows. The plan includes 32 private, wheelchair accessible rooms with showers, family-style kitchen with satellite warmers, dining area, family gathering area, private outdoor patios, additional therapy services, special accommodations and assistance and personal 24/7 staff care.
A fifth project involves adding 24 assisted living apartments between Crown Pointe and Royale Meadows that will include multiple dining selections, private family gathering area, covered outdoor patios and central entrance into the campus’s Main Street.
The five construction projects total an additional 74,675 square feet for the Senior Living campus.
Changes to the main Sioux Center Health campus include remodeling the hospital’s main entrance as well as add a total of 16,024 square feet of space.
“One of the biggest confusions we have is people walking aren’t sure where to go, where to register,” Nelson said. “We’re trying to clean that up.”
The entrance remodel will relocate and redesign how patients get into the medical clinic as well as provide private admission areas for the hospital and medical clinic patients, separate registration area for the specialty clinic and private waiting rooms for the medical and specialty clinics.
Sioux Center Health plans involve adding 16 medical exam rooms to the family medical clinic to be able to integrate the urgent care clinic within the medical clinic and expand behavioral health services. Its plans also include adding seven rooms to the specialty clinic to help increase specialty services.
“Our family medical doctors and practitioners are at 80 percent capacity,” Nelson said. “And we haven’t dropped any of our existing providers so that tells us there’s a need. The clinic is busy and may only get busier and we want to be able to provide for patients.”
The expansion will cut some parking spaces, but Nelson said the main campus has more than it needs currently.
“We know the construction will be a bit of an inconvenience but we believe those seeking service will greatly benefit when it’s all done,” Nelson said.
Sioux Center Health also plans to build a 6,044-square-foot medical office building on the southeast portion of its main hospital campus. This facility would move Avera Home Medical Equipment of Sioux Center adjacent to the hospital. It’s currently renting space at 38 19th St. SW.
Nelson said moving the business to the main campus will make it more visible, improve patient direct access, have more parking for semi-truck deliveries and offer additional opportunities for medical and business expansion.
“All of us at Sioux Center Health look forward to creating new opportunities for our community members to access care and needed services right here at home so they can continue to enjoy the support of family, friends and their faith community,” he said.