2nd Santa Rosa VA clinic eyed for 2020 groundbreaking

Construction of a Veterans Administration community-based outpatient clinic in Santa Rosa is scheduled to begin later this year and completion 14 months later, according to Jason Dominguez, deputy public affairs officer with the San Francisco VA Health Care System.

The clinic will join with six other facilities throughout the Bay Area positioned to be within a 30-minute commute for veterans living in the region, making it more convenient for patients than having to travel to San Francisco to access essential services at a single location, Dominguez explained.

The proposed 60,000-square-foot, single-story facility would be located on an 8-acre parcel at 2285 Challenger Way off Corporate Center Parkway at the southwest corner of Santa Rosa’s Northpoint Business Center. It will not replace the existing VA clinic at 3841 Brickway Blvd. in the Airport Business Center north of Santa Rosa, but instead will add more services to complement those already offered to Sonoma County veteran patients, Dominguez said.

Bonnie Graham is the San Francisco VA director who will oversee the new clinic. A site manager has yet to be selected.

The new clinic is expected to offer primary and specialty care services, mental health, women veteran health services, telehealth and telemedicine, dental, laboratory, occupational and physical therapy, prosthetics, pharmacy and radiology services.

It will also include space for clinical and administrative support staff, such as information technology, logistics, scheduling clerks and housekeeping. This facility will employ an estimated 200 clinical and administrative employees. The site will have 420 parking spaces for staff and patients, Dominguez said.

The total cost to the VA for completion of this project is $12 million, according to Dominguez. The overall cost including land was not disclosed. The VA has agreed to a 20-year lease with the project owner, Santa Rosa VA LLC. Despite its name, this entity is not owned or managed by the Bay Area VA health system or the Department of Veterans Affairs. The land and building are owned by W.D. Schorsch LLC.

John Hausman, principal with W.D. Schorsch LLC, a firm based in Lake Forest, Illinois, said the company specializes in building and managing 87 federal government real estate projects for the VA, General Services Administration, Drug Enforcement Agency, Department of Justice and FBI. W.D. Schorsch is a member of the National Federal Development Association.

“We have a 36-year track record of delivering projects on time,” said Hausman. “Our company has $500 million invested in buildings leased to the federal government, representing 1.6 million square feet under management. Our portfolio of projects across the U.S. includes eight VA clinics, with four more under construction, including the one in Santa Rosa.”

He said the construction plan includes using local contractors in the greater Sonoma County area. This project that is estimated to involve 80 craft persons, initially rising to 250-300 jobs leading up to completion.

“We are putting bids out in June to facilitate open competition for what will become a Green Globe Certified Building, Hausman said. ”We hope to see responses from a broad spectrum of the community, including everyone that would like to be involved.”

Schorsch works closely with Ryan Companies, an 80-year old firm that focuses on health care founded in Minnesota with 16 offices throughout the U.S. Ryan estimates it will do $2.5 billion to $2.8 billion in business this year, according to Steve Stecker, vice president for national health care construction. The firm will serve as the oversight and administration management team for the new VA Santa Rosa clinic.

Stecker is a Certified Health Care Construction manager who has worked on more than 20 VA projects from his home office in San Diego. The company also has a presence in Sacramento.

“This building is being designed as a stress-free facility with everything at ground level – no stairs or elevators. The landscaping will blend in with its surroundings and the exterior will feature a combination of stone, stucco and pre-finished metal. A spacious and comfortable lobby is located just inside the main entrance.”

He said the project began last October and 44 reports have been submitted to comply with regulations, including a complete California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) package sent to the city of Santa Rosa. The VA clinic project is currently going through the design-review process, with a presentation set for the Santa Rosa Design Review Board on July 2.

Stecker said Ryan Companies has 100 site-execution specialists that focus on COVID-19 prevention protocols in keeping with federal, state and county public health orders. Ryan’s role is to provide project management with only three to four company representatives present. All work will be put in place by local contractors.

He said has been working closely with North Coast Builders Exchange CEO Keith Woods to get its members involved.

Both Hausman and Stecker provided additional information about this second VA project in the Santa Rosa areas during the Business Journal virtual Building the North Bay conference held Wednesday.

“This project is a great addition to our area,” said Woods. “I appeal to the business community to get solidly behind this project, because it not only creates jobs but (also) serves as a sign that Santa Rosa is officially open for business.”

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