With construction on the new dental clinic facilities proceeding smoothly, things are looking up for the Van Buren/Cass District Health Department.

Jeff Elliott, health officer/administrator, delivered the update on the new building and other developments during the department’s yearly annual report to the Cass County Board of Commissioners last week.

The new facility, which will be located at the corner of Front and Main Street in Dowagiac, will house additional space for the department’s current dental clinic located at the Lyons Medical Clinic across from Borgess-Lee Memorial Hospital. This additional space, which will be housed on the second floor of the complex, will allow the health department to bring in three new dentists.

While construction officially began downtown in March, the project has been in the works for quite awhile, Elliott said.

“I’ve always been one of those planners who has said if you’re going to do something, you better have a reason,” he said. “You just can’t build something like this and expect people to come.”

The administrator said that the health department has already developed plans on which businesses will be housed in the basement and front of the building well in advance of construction.

“Before we built this, we knew we were going to be successful,” he said.

Elliott said, as long as construction maintains its current pace, the department could move into the building as soon as the middle of August.

The new clinic is part of the department’s greater emphasis on providing dental screenings to the citizens of Cass County — young children, in particular, Elliott said. The health department has been working with schools to help get students screened, as well as constructed additional clinics and hired more staff to handle the additional load.

“Oral decay and oral cancer is causing a lot of issues for adults as well as children,” Elliott said.

The administrator also told the commissioners of the department’s efforts to treat and combat substance abuse in the county, which he described as “out of control.”

“Substance abuse is killing us. It’s killing our children, and I don’t know what the answer is, but I know it’s a very critical component the health department is involved in and I want to continue to be involved in it,” Elliott said.

Commissioner Bernie Williamson commented at the end of Elliott’s remarks that the department has done a great job of supporting the people of Cass County over the years.

“I don’t get complaints from people saying they can’t communicate. They can’t get answers. They can’t get assistance,” she said. “It’s unbelievable.”

Other business conducted by the Board last week included:

• Approval for roofing updates to the county annex, which will be done by Division 7 Contractor, Inc. for $93,450.

• The appointment of Ron McAdam and Wanda Norton to the Cass County Historical Commission for unexpired terms ending on July 1, 2015 and July 1, 2016, respectively.

• The reappointment of Douglas Fry, Sherry Hilden and Al Smouse to the Cass County Historical Commission for terms ending on July 1, 2017.