Valley Cities Behavioral Health Care is a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening communities through the delivery of holistic, integrated behavior health services that promote hope, recovery and improved quality of life.
Since 1965, Valley Cities has responded to the behavioral health needs and emerging socioeconomic challenges of King County residents and diversified its program services accordingly. Starting with just one clinic in Auburn, today Valley Cities serves more than 12,900 people annually at nine comprehensive outpatient care clinics throughout King County with a primary presence in the south.
“We envisioned opening a new clinic in Rainier Beach so as to better serve diverse clients who are low-income,” says CEO Ken Taylor. “Our continued goal is to spread our services widely throughout King County. We recognize the perpetual need and gap for behavioral health care combined with social services to improve the quality of life for individuals struggling with mental illness.”
Valley Cities had purchased a building which had sat vacant for years at a corner that attracted its share of loitering and vandalism. It needed substantial repairs of deferred items as well as renovation to suit the purpose of a professional clinic. To complete the project, Valley Cities needed a loan to renovate the Rainier Beach property.
“We considered working with larger, traditional banks but we wanted to work with RVCDF because the organization was embedded in the community we wanted to serve,” added Taylor. “It was important to us to build a rapport within the Rainier Valley and our partnership with RVCDF supported that.”
Valley Cities connected with RVCDF through its leadership partners at Neighbor Care.
The deployment of funds for this project was entirely consistent with RVCDF’s mission to re-purpose older and abandoned buildings. With most renovation projects, unforeseen and unbudgeted cost overruns are to be expected. As a local lender, RVCDF can be flexible in its lending procedures and responsive to construction issues to ensure project success.
“The process of working with RVCDF was simple,” says Taylor. “We described the need, the team visited the site of the new clinic, a contract was drafted, we signed, spent the necessary funds, and we’ve been able to make regular payments ever since. It’s been two years since we started working with RVCDF and we are very satisfied with our partnership. RVCDF staff even attended the grand opening of the Rainier Beach clinic.”
As a result of RVCDF’s support, Valley Cities is able to serve 250 new clients in Rainier Beach. Valley Cities also hired new staff, trained interns, and grew the clinic to become financially sustaining.
Moving forward, Valley Cities hopes to expand throughout King County, and would definitely consider using RVCDF again.
