70+ people celebrate groundbreaking of new allied health center
Posted: October 16, 2019
At a celebration on Friday, Oct. 11, the Walsh Group and Bates Technical College broke ground on a new $43.7 million Center for Allied Health Education in downtown Tacoma.
The 64,000-square-foot building will house 11 programs, including: Administrative Medical Assistant, Certified Medical Assistant, Dental Assistant, Dental Laboratory Technician, Denturist, Occupational Therapy Assistant, Phlebotomy, Practical Nurse, Nursing Assistant Certified and Medical Simulation Operations Specialist. It will also house the college’s community health clinics, which serve as a hands-on learning experience for students, while providing the community with much-needed low-cost health services.
This building marks a new chapter in our history.
President Lin Zhou and Trustee Chair Christina Blocker began the event with a thank-you message to legislators, who approved funding for the construction of the new building during the previous session. Honored speakers at the event included Representative Mari Leavitt; Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier; Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards; Fred Whang, a member of the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges; Ross Whitehead, Principal at Schriber Starling Whitehead Architects; Mike Curran, Senior Project Manager of the Walsh Group; Practical Nurse student Dawn Rohrer; and Dental Assisting instructor and alumni Teri Amundsen.
Watch a brief video about the new project here.
The Walsh Group and Schreiber Starling Whitehead Architects are leading the design-build team; the project is expected to be complete in April 2021.
The building will provide the growing allied healthcare field with much-needed high-tech educational facilities.
Learn more about the construction project at BatesTech.edu/ConeZone. Check out photos from the historic event here.