Swedish Medical Center's Ballard campus has a long history in the community and that tradition apparently will continue to grow with the hospital's Board of Directors approval of a $31.5 million project to build a new outpatient center and medical office on Tallman Avenue.

The move by Swedish is designed to update and expand the Ballard facility in order to meeting the changing needs of the community.

"We are doing it to continue to grow and expand on the success of the campus," said Swedish/Ballard chief administrative officer Kevin Brown.

When completed in late 2009, the new facility will be five stories high with 105,000 square feet. The site is adjacent to the current Medical Plaza Building.

A new emergency department, medical imaging center, outpatient surgery, primary care and office space for specialty physicians and lab services are planned.

Swedish is also expanding its inpatient offerings that include the childbirth center, orthopedics program, surgical services, medicine and addiction recovery and other outpatient services.

"This is great news for Swedish and the community," said Brown. "The new medical office building will attract more physician specialists to Ballard, making more specialty services available close to home. But they'll also have access to the vast resources of the Swedish system if they need it," said Brown.

"The new facility will be designed with the patient in mind, and it will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including and MRI, CT scanner and digital Mammography."

By making this move, Swedish is reinvesting in the Ballard campus to provide health care to the community.

"It's exciting news. The physicians and staff are thrilled. Having this community hospital is an important part of the Swedish portfolio," said Brown.

Swedish/Ballard's chief of staff, Dr. Shawn West, lives in Ballard and knows how much the area is changing and thriving.

"The redevelopment plan will ensure that our campus can meet the changing needs of this community. It is great news for everyone who lives and works in the northwest Seattle area," he said.

According David Kiehn, Swedish/Ballard's operations director, the Ballard campus has the highest patient-satisfaction level in the Swedish system.

Dean Wong may be reached at 782.1244 or deanw@robinsonnews.com