Local Care, Local Careers
A Replacement Healthcare Facility for All Generations
Why a Replacement Healthcare Facility in North Pacific County?
A Replacement Healthcare Facility will Bring New, Local Services
a. We are out of space at our current hospital & clinic campus
We need local Chemotherapy, Orthopedics, and other visiting specialties
We need expanded local access to primary care physicians
b. We currently have cardiology, podiatry, audiology, IV therapy, and holistic pain management but cannot provide more due to lack of space
c. A new facility would enhance care and provide training, retention, and recruitment benefits for local providers, nurses, and staff
The Hospital Building on the hill in South Bend is old
a. Built in 1952 and is over 70 years old
b. We have worked hard to take good care of it, but the aging infrastructure is failing
c. It is time to build a space that matches the modern care needs of everyone in North Pacific County
3. What will it Cost Taxpayers?
a. A $1.30 per 1,000 assessed property value in 2024 (based on a 5 % interest rate). A $300,000 property value would be $390 annually or $32.50 per month. This amount will change year to year based on assessed property values, and timber tax revenue.
b. Less than a trip to Olympia
c. We put our local taxpayers first. If you have a hospital bill and pay property tax, you can decrease your hospital bill for the amount you supported the hospital in taxes.
4. We all Deserve Quality Care, Especially Those Most Vulnerable
a. We have a growing demand for healthcare services
b. Over 25% of our population is over 65 years old. The fastest-growing part of our population is over the age of 65
c. A Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) was performed at the end of 2024. This information helps us to develop a
community health improvement plan by justifying how and where resources should be allocated to best meet community needs.
Information is collected to identify unmet needs within our community. This study determined the top three community health
priorities to be:
1. Access to Primary Care
2. Access to Specialty Care
3. Access to Behavior Health
To best meet these community needs we need more space!
5. We heard you! We have lowered the price of the bond.
a. We lowered the price of the bond from $46 million in February 2024 to $42 million in 2025.
b. The price per 1,000 of assessed property tax has gone down from 1.66 in 2024 to 1.30 in 2025.
c. The savings to taxpayers from the original bond request for $46 million to $42 million saves the taxpayers $7,730,000.00 over the 30 years of the bond
($4 million with a lower request and $3.73 million in interest).
d. In addition to this decrease, our board of commissioners has been busy exploring additional ways that we may be able to secure outside funding.
Frequently Asked Questions
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In 2019 the Willapa Harbor Hospital Commission began to examine the current state of the hospital and options for improvement.
Our most recent Community Needs Assessment identified that the people living in the area need access to more doctors, having more treatment options and not having to travel out of the area for their health care needs.
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We will carefully evaluate all options we have after we move to the new hospital site. We want to make the best use of the old land and building, as this is our responsibility to the community.
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An engineering study in October of 2020 showed:
The various systems (mechanical, plumbing, and electrical) need updating and/or replacement.
The layout of the hospital, which made sense in the 1950’s, is too small and not designed to provide the current services.
The clinic buildings are outdated and do not support adequate space for services, electronic capabilities, or disability access.
In March 2022 a Capital Facilities Plan was completed that evaluated the structures. Structural, Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing systems were all determined to be approaching end of useful life.
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Building on a new site is less expensive, will improve workflow and safety, and allow a design to support the practice of modern medicine with the needed additional parking to accommodate the growth in patient services. Building on a new site will take approximately 30 months and hospital revenues would be maintained. Retrofit or replacement on the current site would require operating our current hospital while trying to replace it on our current site. This is estimated to take 6 years at the minimum. This would cause rotating patient service closures of up to 6 months per service area, e.g. lab, radiology, surgery. This would cause less available care, staff furloughs/layoffs and a reduction in patient parking. The lost revenue associated with service closures would put the hospital at financial risk and could lead to closure. Retrofit or reconstruction of the current facility would cost - at a minimum - 50 million for retrofit and could cost as much as $191 million for replacement on our current site.
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It will cost a total of $96.4 million.
We have proposed a $42 million bond that will be on the April 22, 2025 Special Election ballot.
For this investment, the public will receive additional and accessible care, local family-wage jobs and a hospital that will serve the community’s needs for decades to come.
The cost to the taxpayer is straight-forward.
The anticipated tax rate is $1.30 per $1,000 property evaluation, for 30 years.
If approved by the voters, bonds valued at $42 million will be sold to investors.
It will work much like a home mortgage, paying both interest and principal over the term of the bond.
Willapa Harbor Hospital is seeking other sources of funding from the State Legislature, the Congress, and private foundations. Any additional revenues will be used to reduce the burden to local taxpayers.
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The parcel met all the necessary criteria, had been partially cleared, and an access road had been built.
Geo-technical site evaluation was done and determined safe for building a structure of the size necessary,
An architectural firm did in-depth work to estimate how much space would be required in the new building and how it might be organized
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The hospital is designated as a critical access hospital and rural health clinic, which increases funding from Medicare.
We have completed a financial feasibility study and modeled the hospital debt capacity to ensure the hospital is able to pay for this project.
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If you pay property taxes in North Pacific County, you can decrease your hospital bill for the amount you paid that year in hospital property taxes.
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The cost of the bond will be locked in, regardless of the rise or fall of property values.
Voters are asked to approve a specific amount, and the amount that is repaid each year does not change.
As property values increase, the rate per $1,000 goes down.
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Planning and design ideas and feedback from frontline caregivers, providers, public hospital district commissioners and community members will be gathered.
We have experienced a double-digit growth—we are running out of room at our current health care facilities, hospital and rural health clinic!
Services done at Willapa Harbor Hospital in 2024
Nearly 200 People were Hospitalized
Over 27,000 Outpatient Visits
Over 5,500 Emergency Room Visits
Over 1,000 Surgery Visits
75,000 Laboratory Tests
Over 26% of our population is over 65 years old. The fastest growing part of our population is over the age of 65.
Timeline of Willapa Harbor Hospital Replacement Project Development
In early 2021 the Board of Willapa Harbor Hospital (WHH) began the development of a Master Facilities Plan. A team of consultants, including architects and engineers, was hired to evaluate the current facility, forecast demand, evaluate options for the facility, and identify options. The consultant team reviewed existing drawings and conducted an onsite review/inspection. It became quite clear WHH has significant facility problems, especially the original 1954 building. It became quite clear to the Board and Administration that ‘standing pat’ with the existing facility is not an option for the future of WHH.
Once the Master Facilities Plan was finished, the Board and Administration started efforts to replace the current facilities. As illustrated in the Timeline, a great deal of work has been done in researching suitable property, identifying criteria for a replacement facility, and defining appropriate services for North Pacific County. A financial consultant, specializing in medical facility projects, was hired to help determine a sustainable financial plan for facility replacement.
After the proposed $46 million bond failed in February 2024, a diverse group of community members was appointed to advise the Board on the next steps. The Technical Advisory Group met six times throughout August, September and October. They examined the facility, listened to experts and worked through the various issues they encountered. Their report and recommendations were delivered to the Board and will be considered at the November 19th meeting. After much thought and consideration the board of commissioners decided to reduce the bond from 46 Million to 42 Million, less than half of the total project. This changed the cost to the taxpayers from $1.66 per 1,000 of assessed property tax value to $1.30 per 1,000 of assessed property tax value.
We would like your feedback!
Please provide feedback on the questions below about our exiting hospital to better help the design team with considerations for a new health care facility.
What works well in the existing facilities?
What needs improvement?
What would you add that is missing?
Please email your responses to: info@willapa.net