Drivers traveling Main Street near downtown Sedalia are getting a front-row seat on the progress of Katy Trail Community Health’s new medical facility. Katy Trail officials hosted a groundbreaking ceremony last August for the building located at 305 W. Main St.
Katy Trail already has a site in Sedalia at 821 Westwood Ave., along with locations in Marshall, Versailles and Warsaw. The new 12,000-square-foot building has two stories and will include medical and behavioral health services. The second floor will house the administrative offices currently at the Westwood location, and nine exam rooms will be on the first floor.
Chief Executive Officer Chris Stewart said the project is going according to plans and that the basement and external walls are up, and internal walls are being installed.
“We have started picking out finishes for the building, including the external brick and composite, as well as the floors and trim,” she said. “We are on schedule for the building to be complete by late August or early September.”
Stewart noted in addition to the construction project, the health center recently hired a new physician, Dr. Alicia Albers-Reine, who is scheduled to start work March 1.
“Dr. Albers-Reine is relocating to Sedalia as her husband’s family is from here,” she said. “She will start at our Westwood site and transfer to the new location when it opens.”
After the new site is complete, Stewart said renovations will begin at the Westwood location. Plans include adding an accessible dental operatory so people who are in wheelchairs can get their dental services at Katy Trail Community Health.
“We recently received the first draft of the plans for the renovation,” she said. “We hope to have the next draft in a few weeks so we can bid out the project soon.”
The new facility and planned renovations will relieve overcrowding and make it easier to work, Stewart said.
“Staff are excited about the new location and the renovations to our Westwood site,” she said. “By moving people to the new site and reconfiguring our current site we will provide our staff and patients with a more comfortable space to provide and receive care.”
Even with the added planning for major upcoming changes, staff continues to care for patients and prepares to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. There is a registration link on the Katy Trail website at katytrailcommunityhealth.org for people to register to receive the vaccine per state guidelines.
“We are partnering with local health departments and hospitals and hiring a vaccination team to vaccinate people in our four-county region,” Stewart said. “Even with the vaccine, it will be months before we are out of the woods. We encourage people to continue to social distance and wear masks when you cannot social distance both indoors and outdoors, and of course, support the Mayor’s white ribbon campaign in support of all area health care workers.”
