Dewane Pace, Haxtun Health CEO
opus non videtur – latin – work you can’t see
The Main Street Clinic project has a lot of activity happening, it’s just not visible as you drive by. We were on target to begin the last phase of construction in the month of July but with the drastic increase and availability of building materials we have revisited the plans and searched for ways to keep the project moving forward and within budget.
According to the Producer Price Index (PPI) and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), building materials are up 19.2% year over year and have risen 35.6% since the start of the pandemic. Mike Ensminger (Project Manager) and Dustin Skarphol (President of Skarco Construction) have gone back and looked for ways to improve the efficiency of the building and keep us on budget. Changes like switching from one large A/C unit for the building that is relatively expensive and has limited availability compared to installing smaller A/C units that are less expensive and changing some of the electrical panels and switches that are larger than what are necessary for the project. We are striving to locate items that are budget friendly and more readily available. These changes make sense and will be invisible to the appearance and function of the building. Thanks to Ensminger and Skarphol’s work we have been able to arrive at a figure that is in line with our original estimates and can now move the project forward. The latest contract we received is out for a final legal review and then we will be ready to press on. This slight delay was worth the wait. We are being good stewards with the funds we have and want to be certain that we are building the best Clinic possible and stay on budget. Hopefully, you will see the roof decking be installed in the next couple of weeks followed by some serious construction in the near future. When completed this 10,000 sq. ft. Clinic, Wellness, and Retail Pharmacy space will be an asset to our community and the patients we serve.