By Emma Dugas, Vitals contributor

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Santa Cruz Community Health (SCCH) and Dientes Community Dental Care (Dientes), today announced a $1 million dollar investment from Sutter Health to support the construction and operation of a 19,000-square-foot medical clinic to be run by SCCH and 11,000-square-foot dental clinic to be run by Dientes on the future site of a health and housing campus that will benefit the Live Oak community.

An Investment in Infrastructure

The future site of the health and housing campus is the ideal location for much-needed services. Supervisor John Leopold notes, “Five years ago there were no medical offices in Live Oak. A community of our size needs good access to medical and dental services and housing that is affordable to all families. This new development will help everyone in the community from small children to families to seniors.” The campus – the first of its kind in Santa Cruz County – will integrate the strengths and services of its three owners:

• SCCH has been serving the medical and mental health needs of underserved Santa Cruz County residents since 1980, with a special focus on families.
• Dientes has an over 25-year track record of providing affordable, high-quality and comprehensive dental care through three existing clinics and an outreach program.
• MidPen Housing, already owns and manages 13 affordable housing communities in Santa Cruz County, providing residents with supportive services.

“Planning for this project started in 2017, and I’m so pleased we are starting to secure large contributions that will make construction possible,” said Dientes CEO Laura Marcus. “Sutter Health has a proven track record of improving the health in this region, so it was no surprise that the not-for-profit system that includes Palo Alto Medical Foundation stepped up to help. This is truly a remarkable demonstration of how we can collaborate for the overall good of our community.”

Sutter Health has committed $1 million dollars, over five years, to the construction and operation of both clinics on the campus. SCCH will receive $160,000 and Dientes will receive $40,000 each year through 2023.

“As a not-for-profit health network, Sutter focuses on improving the health of those inside and outside the walls of our hospitals and care centers,” said Stephen Gray, chief administrative officer for Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center of Santa Cruz and operations executive of Palo Alto Medical Foundation Santa Cruz. “We know that when people have access to preventive screening and routine healthcare, their health improves. This investment builds on Sutter’s commitment to improve the health of the entire community we serve.”

Capital Campaign is Ongoing

“Projects like this one can transform communities. This initiative will bring affordable healthcare and housing to the heart of Live Oak – providing a lifeline to families, adults and seniors,” said SCCH CEO Leslie Conner. “We hope the early funding we’ve secured will be a catalyst for more donations in the coming weeks and months.”

The integrated, state-of-the-art health and housing campus will address a triple-goal of increasing access to healthcare, growing affordable housing, and creating economic opportunity. The project will provide health services to 10,000 patients annually and affordable housing for 57 households. In addition, it will create more than 60 new jobs.

Dientes and Santa Cruz Community Health will break ground on their clinic in 2020 and open in 2021. MidPen will break ground on the housing component in 2021 and open in 2022.

Renderings, photos and more information about the project is available here.