Construction of new WA psychiatric hospital ‘on scope, on schedule, on budget’

The construction of the new $947 million Western State Hospital facility is charging ahead and on track for completion, officials announced Thursday.

Sean Murphy, deputy assistant secretary of the Department of Social and Health Services, spoke about the new 350-bed forensic hospital serving criminal court system patients who need mental health restoration treatment.

“What I can say is that, yes, we’re absolutely on scope, on schedule, on budget with the new hospital,” he said at a Nov. 6 news conference. “And that hasn’t come without a lot of challenges.”

Several old buildings on the state-run psychiatric hospital campus in Lakewood, including a 99-year-old defunct chapel, were demolished to clear space for the new facility, as previously reported by The News Tribune. The project was struck by big cost increases: Its price tag ballooned by more than half because of higher construction expenses.

Gov. Bob Ferguson spent the week working at Western State Hospital, fulfilling, he said, a campaign promise. He said at the news event that the “state-of-the-art” new hospital is expected to come online by August 2028. It will feature single rooms for patients, and more capacity, moving the state in the direction of federal certification.

Ferguson said the state has made great progress in meeting the requirements of Trueblood, referring to a years-long legal battle wherein a federal court found the state guilty of unconstitutional delays in competency restoration and evaluation services and ordered it to shape up. Whereas wait times used to stretch for “many, many, many months,” he said, the current wait time is only days.

Still, Ferguson noted that the state is facing more budget challenges. And projections show that there will be an 8% annual increase in need for behavioral health beds.

Another issue, he said: Workers are hoping to update a paper-documentation system to an electronic one.

Murphy said the new hospital is the largest capital project in the state’s history, not to mention the largest behavioral-health project in the area.

The new hospital will boast views of Mount Rainier in certain locations on campus and secured courtyards, he said. The building will have an aesthetically pleasing design, he added.

“So whether it be the training they provide, the physical plant that we’re putting into play, the medication regimen that’s being provided, the therapies that are being addressed — all of those contribute to a much, much safer hospital,” he said.