CLAYTON — Samaritan Medical Center will provide more money to cover the extra cost of the Clayton Family Health Center's expansion.
The building's owner, the Clayton Improvement Association, ran out of funds after the project was delayed a month because National Grid was unable to install three-phase power lines in time.
"We're very pleased to see it moving forward," said Susan J. Farmer, executive director of the association.
On Friday, Ms. Farmer met with a KeyBank representative and Thomas H. Carman, Samaritan's chief executive officer. Mr. Carman promised to give approximately $60,000 to cover the cost of the new X-ray suite.
Samaritan spokeswoman Krista A. Kittle said the association might be able to finish the project without going over budget but the hospital will provide the additional funds when needed.
"We will commit it if necessary," Ms. Kittle said.
Samaritan initially put forward $316,000 for the project.
She said the project is moving forward "really close to schedule" and there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony when the clinic reopens in mid-November.
The new target date for reopening is Nov. 17. The initial opening date was Oct. 17.
The association has received loans of $1.295 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and $1.275 million from KeyBank. The 20-year lease with Samaritan will cover the principal and interest on the loan and the insurance on the building.
"There was a shortfall and we had cash flow issues with our bank," Ms. Farmer said. "KeyBank just wanted to make sure that there weren't going to be any more surprises."
The X-ray suite was not part of the initial capital project, Ms. Farmer said, but was included later at Samaritan's request. At that time, the improvement association was not anticipating delays and believed the initial budget would cover the cost of the new suite, she said.
National Grid told the association that bad weather caused the delays in installing the three-phase power lines for the building.
Three-phase power lines offer consistent current that extends the life of large motors and lowers the risk of electrical shock compared with single-phase power.
Ms. Farmer said the X-ray suite is 80 percent complete and should be ready when the clinic reopens.
The 9,200-square-foot medical facility, next to the current clinic, has 15 exam rooms, six more than the nine it now has; a new special treatment room, a separate child patient waiting area and a larger lab. The current clinic building will be demolished once the new one is complete.
