With renovations on 2,000 square feet of space at Spokane-based Maddie’s Place completed last month, the nonprofit neonatal transitional care facility in the South Perry District now is considering an expansion, says Shaun Cross, CEO and president of the nonprofit.

“Maddie’s Place recently signed an option to purchase just under 1 acre of property for future expansion,” he says, declining to provide further details on the pending transaction.

The recently completed renovations will allow Maddie’s Place to care for 16 babies, up from eight, and 13 moms, also up from also eight. The organization is purchasing furniture, beds, and cribs for the new space, says Cross.

Spokane-based Bouten Construction Co. was the contractor on the $400,000 project, and Paul Herrington, of Spokane-based ROMR Architects, designed it.

Located in the former Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery building, at 1004 E. Eighth, on Spokane’s lower South Hill, Maddie’s Place is the vision of Trisha Hughes, a registered nurse of over 30 years, as a place to care for infants born with neonatal abstinence syndrome, a condition in which infants experience withdrawal symptoms from prenatal exposure to substances, including opioids, alcohol, and marijuana.

 Cross and Hughes purchased the 12,000-square-foot headquarters in December 2020 for $1.3 million. After completing a $1.3 million initial phase of renovation, the facility opened in October 2022.

Bouten Construction and Herrington also handled the first phase of renovations. 

During both phases of the remodel, Bouten and many subcontractors donated labor at or below cost, or made cash donations, says Cross. The general contractor made a $30,000 corporate donation to Maddie’s Place during phase one of the remodel, and a second corporate donation during the second phase of the remodel, outside of their contract, and offered a small margin of 5.5%. 

Ted Pancoast Woodworking, of Kettle Falls, Washington, for example, donated cabinetry valued at over $100,000, and Bella Windows and Doors, of Spokane, charged Maddie’s Place only 70% of cost and donated the installation costs, says Cross. 

“For phases one and two, Maddie’s Place received roughly $1.65 million in value and improvements for about $1.35 million in actual costs, including sales tax,” says Cross. 

In its first year, the center has cared for 50 babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome and 25 moms, says Cross. The center has 60 full-time employees and plans to hire about 10 registered nurses and infant care specialists to staff its new nursery, he says.

Maddie’s Place was awarded $5.5 million last spring from Washington state’s opioid abatement settlement account to implement a pilot program that studies the efficacy, outcomes, and impact of providing the services that Maddie’s Place offers to infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome and avoid more costly medical interventions.

A contract with the Washington state Health Care Authority was signed on Aug. 31, says Cross.

Maddie’s Place is expected to receive $2.7 million in its first fiscal year that began on July 1, and an additional $2.7 million the following fiscal year.

“Our funding runs through June 2025,” says Cross. “The funds from HCA for our pilot project will cover roughly 80% of our ongoing operating cost.”

Of these amounts, $190,000 is provided for the nonprofit to contract with Washington State University Health Sciences Spokane to conduct research analyzing the prevalence of neonatal abstinence syndrome and infant maternal health outcomes associated with neonatal transitional nurseries in Washington. 

WSU is expected to provide a report to HCA by Sept. 1, 2024, according to Cross.