YOUNGSTOWN Work begins on clinic addition

The VA's portion of the cost will be $1 million.
By WILLIAM K. ALCORN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Site preparation has begun for a 5,000-square-foot addition to the Youngstown Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic.
The project will increase the size of the facility to 15,000 square feet.
The VA Clinic building at 2031 Belmont Ave. is leased from RJR of Youngstown, which along with Dan Tinkler Construction of Warren will build the addition.
The VA's portion of the project cost is $1 million for interior finishing and furnishing.
Construction is expected to begin in two or three weeks and be completed by late spring or early summer of 2002, said Ed Maurer, Youngstown VA director.
Maurer said a new 10-year lease for the building was signed in September.
The addition will contain clinical and office space, including 15 medical examination rooms and reconfigured laboratory, pharmacy, mental health, optometry, podiatry and administrative space.
Growth: The Youngstown VA Outpatient Clinic opened in September 1991 and now serves more than 7,800 veterans, with that total expected to increase to about 10,000 enrollees, Maurer said.
During the last fiscal year, the clinic had 103,000 patient visits. The clinic has 52 employees, increased about 15 percent over last year in response to a greater need for services.
Services provided include primary care, mental health, podiatry, optometry, lab, dietetics, limited physical therapy and radiology.
Maurer said there will be no increase in the 125 parking spaces now available.
The addition will be a one-story structure and match the existing facility, he said.
The Youngstown VA Outpatient Clinic is part of the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
alcorn@vindy.com