BREMERTON — A chorus of sledgehammers pounding against tile rang in the start of CHI Franciscan’s Bremerton clinic.

Harrison Medical Center leaders broke ground on the new outpatient clinic on Monday, a 26,000-square-foot facility at 4207 Kitsap Way in west Bremerton.

The clinic will provide primary care services and run a residency program for new doctors. It’s expected to open in May 2020.

As hospital executives and Harrison board members went to work smashing the former QFC grocery store’s interior, they expressed optimism about moving into a new era of health care in Kitsap County’s largest city.

“Today marks the end of a long planning cycle for us and the beginning of new presence here in Bremerton,” said Harrison president David Schultz, addressing a crowd of more than 50 people at the groundbreaking ceremony Monday afternoon.

“It’s going to be different, but it is going to be long term,” he said.

The clinic is part of Harrison Medical Center's transition to Silverdale, a $500 million project that includes moving hundreds of hospital beds to a nine-story tower that’s still under construction. Harrison will close its Bremerton campus at the end of the move, expected to come in 2023.

CHI Franciscan did not release a budget for the Bremerton clinic project, according to a spokesperson. A Tacoma-based real estate firm, which leased the building to CHI Franciscan, bought the property last year for $2.75 million.

The clinic is expected to receive about 25,000 to 30,000 visits per year once it's up and running. Schultz says it will fill an important gap in Bremerton: access to primary care, which he called the community’s “single greatest need” when it comes to health care.

“This space will house the single largest collection of primary care providers in the entire Kitsap Peninsula,” he said. “Our ability to provide that access will help this community long term.”

City leaders had previously expressed dismay about Harrison's departure, but Schultz expressed gratitude for the city’s help with the project. He read a letter from Bremerton Mayor Greg Wheeler at the groundbreaking event.

Construction crews will spend upcoming months updating the facade, redoing the spacious inside and "green scaping" the large parking lot outside. “It’s really going to change the presence of this whole block,” Schultz said.

CHI Franciscan has also leased the 21,000-square-foot former Rite Aid building next door, with plans to open an urgent care facility in the future. Schultz said there is not yet a timeline for that project.

Providing access ‘from birth to death'

The clinic will also house the Northwest Family Medicine Residency Program, made up of 24 resident doctors and 10 instructors. That program is currently in a clinic next to Harrison Medical Center in East Bremerton.

“We allow (the resident) to practice. We watch them. We provide safety nets for them. We allow them to ask questions, but most of the time is spent taking care of patients," said Michael Watson, director of the residency program.

The new facility will provide a range of outpatient services, including pediatric, geriatric, obstetrics, mental health, sports health, and addiction treatment, though physicians and providers will refer patients to outside specialists.

“As true family physicians we will take care of our patients from birth to death and all the way in between,” Watson said.

With 30 exam rooms and a 1,000-square-foot academic conference room, there’s “ample space” for the program, Watson said. “This has to be at least three times as much space as in the current clinic.”

Teresa Straub, a first-year resident in the program, says she’s excited about the Bremerton clinic providing better access to services, especially for underserved communities.

“We see a lot of folks that otherwise wouldn't be able to access those services,” she said.

Second-year resident John Rambo echoed that enthusiasm: “It’s pretty much a dream to be working in a residency program that’s building its own facility.”

Rambo says it's important for Harrison to maintain a presence in the city.

“Bremerton is a place that has a great health need and that starts with primary care,” he said. “It’s important as Bremerton grows that people have access to health care near their homes.”