County health facility moving to Mountaingate Plaza
Sierra Vista will occupy site of former movie theater
By Darleen Principe darleen@theacorn.com

NEW LOOK, NEW SERVICES- A graphic rendering of what the new Sierra Vista Family Medical Center in Simi Valley will look like. Officials say the new center, which is three times the size of its predecessor on Alamo Street, will offer more specialized care.

Public health patients in the East County will have better access to medical services when the Sierra Vista Family Medical Center moves to an expanded 32,867square-foot facility next year.

The new building, once the former Edwards Theaters in Mountaingate Plaza off First Street and Los Angeles Avenue, will allow the Sierra Vista clinic to more than double in size and be part of a larger healthcare agency that will offer behavioral health services and some specialized care.

The new facility is slated for completion by summer 2008.

"It's a combination of different programs and services," said Paul Lorenz, deputy director of the Ventura County Health Care Agency. "It's a wonderful concept."

According to a staff report drafted on behalf of the agency, the 9,700-square-foot Sierra Vista clinic at 4531 Alamo St. receives more than 22,000 visits annually.

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers MOVING OUT- County official on the current Sierra Vista Medical Center on Alamo: "It's nice, but it has a number of issues."

In March, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved leasing the new building in order to meet growing patient demands.

The county healthcare agency estimates that the new facility could reach an estimated 50,000 visits annually based on demand and the number of Medi-Cal and uninsured patients in the surrounding region.

"The current facilities are not exactly what we would care to offer our clients in terms of offering a nice clinic," Lorenz said. "It's nice, but it has a number of issues."

The county HCA negotiated a 15-year lease with Mountaingate Associates LLC for a monthtomonth rate of $82,168. The reconstruction of the old theater will cost approximately $3 million, monies categorized as tenant improvements and included in the monthly rent.

"That's good because they put the capital into it," Lorenz said. "We don't have to pay it up front."

He said the new facility will provide a more centralized location that will better serve the residents of Simi Valley and surrounding cities. Currently, many clients must travel to the Ventura County Medical Center on the west end to receive specialized services.

The new Sierra Vista clinic, which will occupy 22,867 square feet of the new site, will expand its primary care operations to include services that weren't available before: women's health, pediatrics, radiology and urgent care.

Adult medicine specialties such as cardiology, neurology and diabetes care will also be offered at the Mountaingate facility. Currently, these specialties are only available at the county's Ventura location.

The remaining 10,000 square feet of space will be reserved for the behavioral health department's outpatient mental health clinics for adults and children.

Expansion into other areas may be considered in the future, depending on what the healthcare agency determines to be in greatest demand.

The primary goal now is to adjust to fit the backlog, Lorenz said.

Martha Torres, a Sierra Vista patient, said she hopes the move will improve patient waiting times.

"Every time I go to the doctor, I have to wait about two hours," Torres said. "If they can do something about that, it would be great."