Developer/owner Meridian opened a newly renovated 69,000-square-foot medical facility in Rohnert Park, Calif., in August 2015. The city of Rohnert Park is located approximately 50 miles north of San Francisco and was in need of more healthcare service providers, with only 1.29 doctors per 1,000 residences, far below the national average of 2.4 doctors per 1,000 residences. Meridian bought the two-story building in March 2014, which was built in 1973 and only 50 percent occupied at the time of the sale.

The challenge was to renovate and re-tenant the building without disturbing staff and patients of Kaiser Permanente, which occupied the entire ground floor. A lot of the really disruptive work, such as plumbing connections, demolition, and HVAC improvements had to be scheduled in the early mornings, evenings, and/or weekends to minimize the impact on Kaiser’s operations. Additionally, the second floor had to be upgraded from a general office use to a medical OSHPD III compliant space to house the new tenant, Petaluma Health Center (PHC)’s Rohnert Park Health Center.

PHC’s space needed to be highly functional to accommodate the anticipated 100,000 patient visits per year and uphold the center’s high standards, while remaining within budget. Achieving these objectives took careful coordination and collaboration between all stakeholders: PHC, the architect, the general contractor, the owner, the city, and neighbors. 

One of the center’s highlights is a large dental facility that includes 15 dental chairs with an emphasis on preventive dental care for children 0-21. The center also offers behavioral health services, vision services, medical and gynecology services, wellness programs, and an on-site laboratory and pharmacy.

  • Construction start: November 2014
  • Completion: July 2015
  • Architect: INDE Architecture
  • General contractor: Stevens Hemingway Stevens