Dr. Eve Klein, medical director for CODA’s Portland Recovery Center and Jennifer Worth, project manager and consultant for the CODA Seaside clinic, were on hand to greet visitors to the new treatment center on South Roosevelt Drive.

CODA is Oregon’s oldest opioid treatment program, offering treatment for substance abuse disorders including alcohol, crack cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and other amphetamines, as well as opioids and prescription medication.

With treatment centers in Portland, Hillsboro, Clackamas, Gresham, and Tigard, in a few weeks the organization expects to open their newest location in Seaside in January, co-project manager Jennifer Worth said at an open house at the new location at 2367 S. Roosevelt Drive on Sunday.

Staff trainings could start next month. “I’ll be putting the furniture in mid-November,” Worth said.

The project is a collaboration between Columbia Pacific CCO, Care Oregon and CODA Inc. CODA conducts and supports substance use research to inform evidence-based care and to improve patient health and treatment outcomes.

Visitors were given a tour of the uncompleted facility, which anticipates seeing 30 patients lin Clatsop and Tillamook counties going to treatment in Portland at this time. The CODA center in Seaside will serve patients for the Clatsop, Tillamook and Columbia counties region.

Worth said she “works on the CODA side,” while co-project manager Sydney Van Dusen works on community partnerships and construction budget. Worth credits Anderson Dabrowski Architects and the construction of Randy Stemper for “keeping things moving forward with the build.”

Along with the reception area, the clinic will have four dispensary windows, multiple medical exam rooms, group rooms for counseling, a records room, DEA-approved safes for medication security, and a staff break room. Fifteen health care professionals will be working at the location every day.

Alison Noice is executive director of CODA; Dr. Eve Klein is the medical director for CODA’s Portland Recovery Center. While the majority of patients anticipated to come through the door will be insured through Medicaid, she expects any low-income patient can qualify for treatment at the Seaside location as long as they can provide legitimate identification who they are and where they live.

The clinic’s future opening was a topic for Monday night’s Seaside City Council meeting, with councilors Steve Wright and Tita Montero having attended the Sunday open house. 

Montero asked clinic staff to hold open community forums prior to opening. “I think there’s a lot of explaining and education that can go on in our community, so I’m hoping they will take that suggestion seriously,” Montero said. 

— R.J. Marx