YAKIMA, Wash.-- Some big changes coming for Yakima's Union Gospel Mission.
They've started work on a brand new dental clinic at their facility on N. First Street.
Crews just broke ground for the new, 1,900 square foot facility that's going to have four, state of the art exam rooms.
The mission already has a medical and dental clinic on site, but they say the 15 year old facility just isn't big enough for the growing number of people coming to the mission for medical and dental needs.
The director says the new clinic will be open to anyone who needs help, and these days, he says there's a lot of people in need.
"There's a lot of folks out there that are probably putting off dental care to stay in their homes. We see those folks coming in here for medical care," said Rick Phillips, director of UGM.
Phillips says they have about 36 Yakima Valley dentists that rotate in and out of the current clinic, volunteering their time to help less fortunate people.
He says the facility will cost about $700,000 and they're still in need of more money to provide all the latest technology to patients.
Phillips says they hope to have the clinic open by January of next year.
