For nearly a decade, leaders of Alexander Valley Healthcare carried architectural renderings from meeting to meeting, determined to one day build a full-service clinic worthy of the care they provide from a patchwork of aging offices in downtown Cloverdale.
On Wednesday night, that vision moved a major step closer to reality.
In a moment that drew both cheers and tears, Senate President Mike McGuire announced during a community meeting that the state would provide the final $3.5 million needed to advance construction of a new Alexander Valley Healthcare community health center.
The announcement, delivered before more than 100 people inside the Cloverdale Veterans Memorial Building, capped years of advocacy by residents and health leaders who have fought for the project.
“Cloverdale and the surrounding region deserve an investment that will pay dividends for generations to come,” McGuire told the crowd.
For years, Cloverdale has remained the lone corner of Sonoma County without a modern community health facility, even as new clinics have opened in Guerneville, Santa Rosa and Petaluma. The city’s roughly 9,000 residents — along with thousands more from neighboring rural communities such as Geyserville and Hopland — have long faced limited access to doctors, dentists and behavioral-health specialists, leaving the region what officials have described as a health care desert.
Alexander Valley Healthcare, a federally qualified health center, has worked to fill that gap since 2001. But its three leased sites — a small medical clinic, a dental office and an administrative suite — are overcrowded and outdated.
Deborah Howell, Alexander Valley Healthcare’s CEO, speaking to the crowd, grew emotional as she thanked McGuire and the community for their support. She said the new facility will allow the health center to double the number of patients it serves and bring more doctors and specialists to Cloverdale.
The $40 million project, planned on a 2.8-acre site at South Cloverdale Boulevard and Citrus Fair Drive, has been years in the making. Alexander Valley Healthcare purchased the property in 2023 and has since pieced together a complex funding plan that includes federal grants, private donations and tax-exempt bonds.
The state’s new allocation closes a critical gap and brings the project within reach of construction. Still, McGuire noted that about $3 million in additional funding remains to be raised and urged residents to help finish the job.
“The bottom line as you leave today, and in this season of thanks that we are entering into, is it’s going to break ground,” McGuire said, drawing loud applause.
The evening carried a buoyant tone for attendees, many of whom have championed the project for years.
When completed, the three-story, 40,000-square-foot building will offer expanded medical, dental and behavioral-health services, along with urgent care, an in-house pharmacy, and space for visiting specialists such as podiatrists, physical therapists and chiropractors.
County leaders have long called the project a “game-changer” for northern Sonoma County, where distance and transportation have limited access to basic care. Sonoma County Supervisor James Gore, who represents much of the region, has previously described the effort as a milestone for equity in rural health access.
McGuire also announced an additional $500,000 in state funds for improvements to the Cloverdale Veterans Memorial Building, the same hall where Wednesday’s celebration was held. The building doubles as both a public gathering space and a hub for local veterans.
“We’re a very close-knit community,” said veteran Gene Marcinkowski.
State funding puts Cloverdale’s long-awaited $40M health center on track to break ground
