Work begins on new Mercy clinic in Ozark

Two months after breaking ground on its new clinic in Ozark, crews hired by Mercy Springfield Communities are laying the foundation for the facility.

Jenine Vincent, vice president of operations, said the building’s first footing was poured about a week and a half ago and concrete work will be performed in the next few weeks. Dirt work began around the time of the Oct. 23 groundbreaking ceremony.

The 13,600-square-foot building, located on 3.4 acres at the intersection of Highway 14 and North 25th Street across from B&B Theatres Inc.’s Ozark cinema, is slated to wrap up by June, she said. It would replace Mercy’s existing, 6,600-square-foot Ozark clinic at 1106 W. Jackson St.

“The demand in the Ozark community is very high for health care needs,” Vincent said, pointing to some 13,000 people a year that visit Mercy’s clinic in the city. “We consistently note the growth the Ozark community has and continues to have.”

Pitt Development Group LLC is the developer of the project, with construction work led by DeWitt & Associates Inc. and architecture by Bates & Associates Inc. The price of the development is undisclosed.

Vincent said the new clinic would employ 34 - including eight providers, up from four - and include a new optical shop. The building would have 27 exams rooms providing primary care, lab, X-ray and optical services.