Governor, Mayor to Help EBNHC Break Ground on $20.7M Maverick Square Facility
Event to Mark the First Stimulus-Funded Health Center Project to Begin Construction in US
East Boston, MA, June 10, 2010—Jack Cradock, President and CEO of the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, today announced that the center, with help from Massachusetts Governor Deval L. Patrick, Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, and Congressman Michael E. Capuano, will break ground on its new $20.7 million facility at 20 Maverick Square in East Boston on Monday, June 14, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. The new 49,000 square-foot ambulatory care building, which is being funded in part by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), will allow EBNHC to create new, critically needed capacity to serve patients in need of primary care, vision services, and dental care. It is the first ARRA-funded project to break ground in the United States.
In addition to Governor Patrick, Mayor Menino, and Congressman Capuano, the ground breaking event will feature state and local elected officials, EBNHC board members, and officials from the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers and the National Association of Community Health Centers.
“Community health centers are on the front lines of our Commonwealth’s health care system, and today we celebrate the ground breaking of a state-of-the-art facility that will provide quality care for the people of East Boston,” said Governor Patrick.“With stimulus funds from the federal government, this new facility will bring jobs to this vital community and ensure that residents get the quality services they deserve.”
“I am very excited about the developing stages of the EBNHC facility,” said Mayor Menino. “By expanding the health center’s size, the new building will meet the demand for medical services in the area and also create new construction and health care jobs.”
The new Maverick Square facility, which will be completed in just over a year, will expand primary care, vision, and dental services that have been operating in tight quarters in the main health center building. Demand for these clinical services has been growing at a pace that cannot be sustained in the current location. The new building will also provide a home for the EBNHC Education & Training Institute, as well as for administrative offices that are currently in leased space.
“The East Boston Neighborhood Health Center is an important presence in the community. These generous federal stimulus funds will help the center expand to meet growing needs. In addition to construction jobs, the enhanced facility will employ more medical personnel, and a larger staff will provide patients with more and better medical and preventive services,” stated Congressman Mike Capuano, co-founder and co-chair of the Caucus on Community Health Centers in the US House of Representatives.
Consistent with the intent of ARRA, the $12 million in stimulus funds for this $20 million project will help to create over 150 construction jobs and more than 50 permanent health care jobs. An additional benefit of the project will be the anchor it provides to economic development and revitalization efforts in Maverick Square.
“June 14 marks a new day for our community health center, but it also represents the culmination of many years of planning, persistence, and hard work by our organization to win the financial support for this facility,” said EBNHC President and CEO Jack Cradock. “We are very grateful for the support we have received for this important project, both in terms of the federal funding for which the Governor advocated so passionately, and for the efforts of the Boston Redevelopment Authority to work so closely with us to get this building right.”
The new facility in Maverick Square will be built on a lot that is largely vacant, and will complement a renovated MBTA Blue Line station and other recent area improvements. The building will be LEED-certified and fully energy efficient. The architect for the project is is genuity, LLC of Needham, MA, and the project manager is Suffolk Construction of Boston.
The East Boston Neighborhood Health Center (EBNHC) has been a vital part of its community for over 40 years, providing easily accessible, high-quality health care to all who live and work in East Boston and the surrounding communities of Chelsea, Revere, Everett, and Winthrop. EBNHC handles 300,000 patient visits per year—more than any other ambulatory care center in New England.
The Maverick Square building project is funded in part with monies made available under the Facility Investment Program (FIP) supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and announced under HRSA-10-029. The FIP Grant in the amount of $12 million dollars represents 58% of the current estimated total project cost of $20.7 million dollars. Non-governmental funds equal $8.7 million dollars, or 42% of the current estimated total project cost.
