Stephanie Paraian of Westland gets dental work done at Ypsilanti's Hope Clinic.

Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com

Laura Paraian watched on a recent afternoon as her daughter, Stephanie, got fillings put in at the Hope Clinic’s new dental facility in Ypsilanti.

Paraian, from Westland, said she goes to Hope because only her husband is working right now, money is tight and they don’t have insurance. The dental care is free for low-income residents and families without insurance, and she said the staff at the center “makes you feel like you’re family.”

The Paraians visited Hope several months ago and were seen in the clinic’s old offices. But on this recent Tuesday, they were at the new Harriet Street offices, and Parain finds the new space to be a vast improvement.

“It’s much different,” she said. “The old place was small … but this is much more modern and much easier for everyone.”

Paraian is one of thousands of visitors who come to Hope annually for services. The new dental clinic is part of a 20,000-square-foot addition to the center that opened on May 2. In the construction's second phase, the old 3,500-square-foot center will be renovated. Upon completion, the $3.6 million project will allow Hope to consolidate all their operations under one roof and significantly increase its capacity.

Prior to the construction, Hope’s dental clinic was on South Adams Street, the medical clinic was on Arnet Street and the administrative services building was in the old Hope administrative building at 518 Harriet. The hot meals program housed at the Grace Fellowship Church will move into the old Hope building.

“This enhances our coordination of services and helps staff be more efficient,” said Cathy Robinson, Hope’s executive director. “We are more efficient and effective, more client and patient friendly, and having everything in one stop makes Hope easier to access.”

Overcrowding at the medical clinic has been an issue for several years, and Robinson said the waiting room was often overflowing with clients. Now clients are welcomed by a spacious waiting room upon entering the building, and the clinic holds eight exam rooms instead of five.

Hope staff expects to reopen the old administrative building in August.

Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com

The pharmacy is also much larger, as is the clinic’s administrative area.

Last year, the clinic saw over 7,400 medical visits with 2,400 unique patients. Robinson Last year, the clinic saw more than 7,400 medical visits with 2,400 unique patients. Robinson and her staff set a modest goal of seeing an immediate 5 percent bump in the number of patients, and the expectation is that they could accommodate a 50 percent increase as they enlist more volunteers.

On a recent Saturday, the clinic utilized seven of the eight rooms, but Hope can’t operate at capacity because its ranks of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and support staff are only large enough to run the old, smaller clinic. About 350 volunteers staff the medical clinic regularly throughout the year, and around 12 volunteers run the clinic daily.

Currently the clinic pulls the bulk of their volunteers from St. Joseph Mercy and the University of Michigan medical systems, and about 20 percent come from elsewhere.

Robinson said attracting more volunteers is critical to the clinic serving more residents and offering improved care. Hope is trying to get the word out to the medical and dental communities to attract more help.

“To grow we have to have more clinicians, nurses and support staff. That’s the limiting factor right now,” Robinson said.

Pat Rutowski is a nurse practitioner who has volunteered one day a week at Hope since 2001, and works with patients with chronic diseases ranging from diabetes to depression to asthma. She said the clean, modern facility makes operating the clinic easier on staff and visiting easier for patients.

“It’s a tribute to the patients,” she said. “It’s a statement about their value.”

The dental clinic also expanded. It now has seven exam rooms with new equipment donated from A-Dec that staff calls “the best of the best”.

Hope saw 4,600 dental visits last year and dental clinic coordinator Becky Lewis highlighted the efficiency in the new offices. In the old space, staff handled around 200 calls weekly, and that number has significantly dropped with the simple addition of an automated phone system.

The new building offers much more space for the clinic's administrative staff.

Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com

Having all Hope’s programs under one roof improves running a multi-faceted operation like Hope from a logistical standpoint, Lewis said. Offering “one Hope” also means staff in the different programs, who share a common goal, actually get to know each other.

“There is much more support when you have the entire Hope community together,” she said.

Hope’s chapel in the new addition is temporarily housing the foodbank. Staff packed food into a 200-square-foot bank at the new facility, but will have a 1200-square-foot room when the while phase two is complete. Clients will also be able to “shop” for food instead of receiving grocery bags prearranged by staff ahead of time when the renovated area opens in August.

Clients must sign up to receive food, which is made available three times weekly, but the center is also the only “true emergency” center in the county. If someone shows up and says they have no money or no food, Hope will provide a grocery bag.

Hope's foodbank serves around 60 to 70 people weekly, and Robinson expects that number will jump once the new facilities are open. She added that Hope will try to start better servicing special needs residents who have diabetes , high cholesterol or other concerns.

The renovated building will also house a commercial kitchen and dining room to accommodate the hot meals program, which offers free meals to poor residents on Saturday and Sunday.

Hope raised construction funds through a 3-year fundraising effort that included cabinet donations from the Masco Corporation and Repairclinic.com, which donated washers and dryers for the clinic's free laundry room.