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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 1, 2019)
REGION Thursday, August 1, 2019 East Oregonian A3 Aspen Springs project could open by end of year Lifeways broke ground on project in 2016 By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian HERMISTON — An acute psychiatric care facil- ity being built in Hermis- ton could accept its first patient by the end of 2019. Lifeways broke ground on Aspen Springs Psychi- atric Hospital, a secure 16-bed facility for patients with an acute mental health disorder, in 2016. Micaela Cathey, Lifeways’ execu- tive director for Umatilla County, said the project recently passed its initial site review with the state and is moving forward with the review for the state licensing process, fol- lowed by Centers for Medi- care and Medicaid Services certification. “We’re very excited to bring this to the commu- nity,” she said. “We’re as anxious for this to open as Staff photo by Jade McDowell Aspen Springs Psychiatric Hospital is going through the review process to receive the necce- sary certifications for operation. the community is.” As part of the CMS pro- cess, Lifeways anticipates a “soft opening” of about six beds in November or December, before transi- tioning into full 16-bed service at the beginning of 2020. Cathey said they will hire between 35 and 40 employees, from social workers to nurses, to fully staff the facility. When Lifeways broke ground in summer 2016 they expected to open in about a year, but Cathey said meeting all of the reg- ulations in place for such a secure facility “has led to some lengthening of the timeline, much to our chagrin.” Elizabeth Johnsen, exec- utive director of business excellence, said an acute psychiatric care facility has to meet higher standards than even a hospital, such as “anti-ligature” measures to prevent possible suicide attempts. “The intention is to make it the most safe we can for patients and staff, which is why we wanted to do it right the first time,” she said. Aspen Springs will include 16 individual rooms for patients, a dining area, common area, reflection room, nurses station, offices for therapists, a fenced courtyard and more. Tours will be available to the pub- lic before the facility begins providing care. Johnsen and Cathey said Aspen Springs will fill a “huge gap” in mental health care in Eastern Oregon. Cur- rently, most patients experi- encing a mental health crisis are transported to facilities on the western side of the state, pulling them away from support systems like friends and family. Now, they said, if some- one in Umatilla County is in a crisis they can stay in Hermiston, where fam- ily can visit, participate in family therapy sessions and work with care providers in person to create a plan for transitioning the patient back out of the acute care facility. Lifeways staff who provide inpatient care at Aspen Springs will also be able to coordinate closely with Lifeways staff who provide outpatient services to the client. “The key is that we will be able to serve our commu- nity directly in the commu- nity,” Cathey said. It will also add more beds to what has been a shortage of psychiatric beds in Oregon and across the nation, reducing wait times for care. The facility is located at 1212 Linda Avenue, near Lifeways’ Hermiston offices. Construction underway at Development commission discusses Wildhorse Resort & Casino plan to buy distressed real estate By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Construction crews with Lydig Construction of Kennewick, Wash., begin excavation at Wildhorse Resort & Casino in preparation for an $85 million expansion project set to be completed in August or September of 2020. The project will include expansion of existing features, such as the cineplex and children’s entertainment center, as well as new addi- tions, such as an arcade, food court and 24-lane bowling alley. BRIEFLY Hermiston Avenue lane closures planned for next week HERMISTON — Contractors will be shutting down one lane of traffic at a time on Hermiston Avenue between Southwest Third Street and Southwest 10th Street throughout next week as they overlay new pavement on the street. The lane closures will start Monday, and will not affect the Umatilla County Fair Parade scheduled for Saturday. The schedule was changed from the original plan to complete the work ahead of the fair parade. After paving between Third and 10th streets is complete, Hermiston Avenue will be closed between First and Third streets for a more extensive rebuild of that portion of road. Businesses inside the clo- sure area will remain open, with parking on side streets and behind the buildings. PENDLETON — Dubi- ous of a proposal to reduce housing blight in the urban renewal district by offering a forgivable loan program, Mayor John Turner sug- gested the city it take a step further: Buy blighted houses directly off the market, fix them up with the help of a local developer, and sell the renovated property to a pro- spective homeowner. At a Pendleton Devel- opment Commission work- shop, a developer with prop- erty in the district voiced his own concerns with the may- or’s idea. Bruce Gianotti told the council that he bought a rental house on Southwest Court Avenue 19 years ago, but decided to renovate it and sell it based on advice given to him by a real estate agent. But despite modernizing the house, Gianotti said the property continues to sit on the market. “I’ll get my money back, but I’m not making a reason- able profit on the conditional investment I put into it,” he said. Gianotti is selling the house for about $154,000, a price that doesn’t fall too far outside the norm. Charles Denight, the commission’s associate director, studied the urban renewal district housing market over the past year and a half and found that the average sales price in 2018 was $120,000, and $154,000 over the first six months of 2019. Denight also presented a proposal where the city would provide partially for- givable loans to house flip- pers to buy and renovate houses. But Gianotti said the city’s cost estimates were probably conservative because they weren’t factoring in carry- over and sales costs. He also questioned whether the city should get into the mortgage business. Gianotti suggested the blighted housing program work similarly to the ele- vator and façade grant pro- gram, a reimbursement grant for a percentage of the renovation costs. As discussions contin- ued, Turner suggested the city return to the drawing board. “It sounds like my initial proposal is not very work- able, but something similar to it might be if it were a grant that would reimburse the ren- ovator ... a certain portion of the project,” he said. While no concrete ideas emerged at the meeting, Denight suggested coun- cil and committee mem- bers take their time until they come up with a pro- posal they are all comfort- able with. Some councilors said they would be more supportive of programs that mainly tar- geted owner-occupied hous- ing instead of rental housing and included more cost shar- ing from the homeowner. Mom & Baby Support Group SUPPORT GROUPS THURSDAY, AUG. 1 OPEN AA MEETING, 12 p.m., Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, 241 S.E. Second St., Pendle- ton. Coffee is provided. (Ed 541-207-2548) AS BILL SEES IT AA MEETING, 12 p.m., com- plex, 680 W. Harper Road, Hermiston. REBOUNDERS STROKE SUPPORT GROUP, 1:30 p.m., St. Anthony Hospital conference room 3 or 4, 2801 St. Anthony Way, Pendleton. (Shawna 541-969-1865) LOST AND FOUND YOUTH OUTREACH, 3 p.m., Pendleton Recreation Center, 510 S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton. Help for youth 12-18 facing challenges. (Leslie 541-276-3987) WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES AND DOMES- TIC VIOLENCE, 4 p.m., Eastern Oregon Cen- ter for Independent Living, 322 S.W. Third St., Pendleton. A safe, secure environment to learn skills and develop tools to move forward after abuse and violence. (Linda Valentine 541-276-1037) HEALTHY CHOICES AA MEETING, 5-6:30 p.m., St. Anthony Hospital conference room 1, 2801 St. Anthony Way, Pendleton. (541-207-2548) WOMEN FOR SOBRIETY SUPPORT GROUP, 5:30-7 p.m., First Christian Church, 516 S. Main St., Milton-Freewater. New members welcome. (Kimberlie Krieg 541-861-3283) TOPS, 6 p.m., Peace Lutheran Church, 210 N.W. Ninth St., Pendleton. 6 p.m. weigh-in, 6:30-7:30 p.m. meeting. (Heather Endersby 541-969-6997) CELEBRATE RECOVERY, 6-9 p.m., First Assem- bly of God Church, 1911 S.E. Court Ave., Pend- leton. 6-7 p.m. large group, 6-8 p.m. Celebra- tion Place (children K-5), 7-8 p.m. open share group, 8-9 p.m. Solid Rock Cafe social time (all ages). Christ-centered 12-step program for those with hurts, habits and hangups. Childcare is available for children ages 1-5. (541-276-6417) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE/SEXUAL ASSAULT WOMEN’S SUPPORT GROUP, 6-7:30 p.m., call for location, Pendleton. Sponsored by Domes- tic Violence Services. (541-276-3322) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE/SEXUAL ASSAULT WOMEN’S SUPPORT GROUP, 6-7:30 p.m., call for location, Hermiston. Sponsored by Domes- tic Violence Services. 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We provide Free snacks, support, breastfeeding help and baby weigh ins. Debt managers not managing debt? Know before you owe dfr.oregon.gov St. Anthony Clinic 3001 St. Anthony Way Pendleton, Oregon www.sahpendleton.org
