Kaiser Permanente Breaks Ground on Medical Facility In Crenshaw
The Baldwin Hills-Crenshaw community is finally getting a medical center after years of years of discussion and planning.
Construction on a new Kaiser Permanente outpatient medical facility in Marlton Square is now underway after first being announced three years ago. The outpatient center is part of an ongoing process to redevelop the area.
"You have funding concerns and you have to get agreement from the community on exactly what they want here," Herb Wesson, City Council President, said. "We are on the right path and, I think, in a short period of time, people will be able to pass here with a lot of pride."
Georgina R. Garcia, R.N., a Kaiser Permanente Executive Director, said that there were a lot of different agencies to go through with the city of Los Angeles, which lead to the three-year delay.
"Now we're done with that part of the work and we can start building," Garcia said.
Wesson said that one could tell that the community was estatic about Kaiser breaking ground for the facility on Tuesday.
"This was a vibrant place," Wesson said. "We hope to bring that back and I think this is a significant step in the right direction."
Natalie Lawless, a Baldwin Hills-Crenshaw resident, said that the community has changed since she was a child and all of the hospitals have left since then.
"For Kaiser to come back in now is wonderful," Lawless said. "I only hope that they continue to support our community and everyone who lives here."
The outpatient center is set to serve the neighborhood of 80,000 people. Services such as diagnostic imaging and pediatric care will be available to the community.
Avis Ridley-Thomas, a Baldwin Hills-Crenshaw resident, said that Kaiser will provide a lot of preventive services for the community and that is important.
"I'm really going to be excited to take advantage of this wonderful, new, state-of-the-art facility," Ridley-Thomas said.
The outpatient center is set to open in the spring of 2017.