San Carlos Apache Community Breaks Ground on Health Center

Willmeng Construction took part in a groundbreaking event in Southeastern Arizona to mark the start of construction on the new Clarence Wesley Health Center in Bylas, a 34,000-square-foot healthcare facility that will better serve the San Carlos Apache Tribe’s Bylas community.

Among those who provided remarks during the groundbreaking event were chairman of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, Terry Rambler; the chairman of the San Carlos Apache Healthcare Corporation Board of Directors, Steve Titla; Bylas district council members Ned Anderson Jr., Eugene David Nozie and Jonathan Kitcheyan, as well as Willmeng CEO James Murphy. Another member of the SCAHC Board, Kathy Wesley-Kitcheyan, the daughter of Clarence Wesley, also spoke about her family’s history and her father’s legacy.

The center will provide the San Carlos Apache community with a modern medical facility that can host a broader range of vital healthcare offerings. The facility will replace the current, smaller building. The larger facility will give the tribe the opportunity to expand and upgrade its services, including the expansion of dental, pharmacy and optometry as well as the addition of Imaging services.

The health center is designed by Cuningham Architects and will utilize an exterior insulation finishing system, providing added energy efficiency to the facility. The center will also have a backup electrical system that can power the facility for 96 hours. The new location will replace the existing facility that was damaged by shifting soils and is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2025.