Currently, the foundation has 14 physicians in Tracy based in three different offices, according to Sutter Gould Medical Foundation CEO Paul DeChant.
“We’ve been looking to the future to find a way to have our Gould Medical Group physicians working in a way that is closely aligned with Sutter Tracy Community Hospital,” he said. “Opportunity to put it next door to the hospital really fits well with that strategy.”
The Sutter Gould Care Center — as it’s been dubbed — will be located on the current site of the Eaton Medical Center at 441 W. Eaton Ave. The existing building will be torn down and the new facility built on the same site, DeChant said. The total cost of the purchase was unavailable on Tuesday, according to Katie Kidder, marketing and communications manager for Sutter Health Central Valley Region.
Officials anticipate the care center to open in the fall of 2014. The sale was announced on Jan. 15.
The new facility — approximately 35,000 to 40,000 square feet and costing approximately $20 million — will house Gould physicians that specialize in such fields as family practice, internal medicine, pediatrics, gynecology and neurology with accommodations to house up to a total of 30 doctors.
“We’re a multi-special medical group that works best when fully integrated,” DeChant said. “We can work together to take care of our patients more efficiently. It’s also nice because the independent physicians have their offices close to the hospital as well and we can continue relationships with them as well.”
The cost of the project is estimated at approximately $20 million.
According to Foundation officials in a press release, their previous plans called for the care center to go at the site of the Gateway project in conjunction with the replacement hospital for STCH, but current economic conditions have put those plans on hold for the next 10 to 15 years.
Contact Denise Ellen Rizzo at 830-4225 or drizzo@tracypress.com.
I would argue that its better for Sutter to expand where its current site is.
that area would quickly deteriorate if Sutter was abandon the area; I consider this good news.