Excelsior Wellness Center has started the $7 million first phase of expansion and renovation at its campus in Spokane’s Indian Trail neighborhood.

In all, the organization plans projects that will be completed in three stages over the next four years with an estimated total cost of $19 million.

The current renovation and expansion involves remodeling about 12,000 square feet of the 60,000-square-foot facility at 3754 W. Indian Trail Road and adding about 1,500 square feet to the north side of the building.

Work on the addition, which will house outpatient services for Excelsior, started late last year, and the entire first phase of improvements is scheduled to be completed in November.

The Spokane office of Swinerton Builders is the general contractor on the project, and Bernardo Wills, of Spokane, designed it. McKinstry Co.’s Spokane office is handling mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire contracting services, and DCI Engineers, which also has a Spokane office, is the structural engineer.

Separate from the first phase, Excelsior plans to revamp its parking, driveways, and curbing in a $1.2 million project that’s likely to be completed in November as well.

Future phases of work will involve interior upgrades and revamps of the building’s heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system. The second stage of work will involve improvements to the main part of the building, and the final phase will focus on the Excelsior Holistic Schools space. Design work on the second phase is expected to start midyear, with remodeling work set to start in early 2024.

All upgrades to the facility are expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

Lynn Suksdorf, vice president of acquisitions and alignment at Excelsior, says all phases of the project will incorporate trauma-informed design, which is characterized by interior elements, lighting design, and architectural features that are intended to be more inviting and calming, in contrast to a conventional, sterile health care environment.

Founded in the mid-1960s, Excelsior Wellness is a nonprofit health care system alternative that incorporates education, behavioral health, primary care, and social and human services. The organization’s total employment was approaching 200 people as of early March.