A health-centered collaborative will bring new life into a long-vacant Dayton building.
The redevelopment of a former medical office will bring together a cluster of health-focused practitioners to serve the greater community.
Owner Kate Thomas, a licensed massage therapist, is behind the incoming Collective Good Integrated Health. She and her husband Shannon Thomas are renovating a former medical office at 620 Kling Drive near Oakwood.
Thomas says upon opening later this year, The Collective Good Integrated Health will be a community hub for health-oriented practitioners including acupuncturists, therapists, massage therapists and others.
"This is to support the community’s health," Thomas said.
Thomas said she's not accepting formal applications yet for intersted practitioners, but she's already had 10-12 people reach out to express interest.
Thomas, who currently operates her solo practice Heartwood Therapeutic Massage in Kettering, said her clients have been asking for a space in which they can get multiple complementary services in one location. She will expand her practice into the new location.
Thomas is training now to offer massage therapy for oncology patients. She said The Collective will be a place for integrated medicine and not a spa or boutique for facials and haircuts.
The Thomases purchased the 1,500-square-foot building this past December for $121,000. Thomas says the building had been in foreclosure and has been vacant at least seven years.
Thomas says she has a private lender for the commercial loan to purchase the building.
"It’s a unique building and quiet area," Thomas said. "It's tucked in a little neighborhood. It's been overlooked and I wanted to save the building."
Shannon Thomas is the contractor for the renovation work. Renovations will cost around $20,000 of the couple's own money.
Many neighbors have already stopped by to thank the Dayton couple for reviving the property.
"We’re working fast," Kate Thomas said. "We hope to have doors open in April."
Thomas says when it's complete, practitioners will be able to rent fully furnished rooms to conduct services. Rental agreements can be for one to two days a week, on a month-to-month basis.
Thomas says she wants to help other local practitioners who are trying to go out on their own or building clientele.
"It's a grow-and-go model," Thomas said. "To lean on each other while navigating the waters. There is no brochure that gives you this kind of information."
The Thomases are no stranger to entrepreneurial efforts. The couple flips houses and Shannon Thomas is owner of Surf Dayton.
Shannon Thomas is currently renovating a building on Valley Street in Dayton into a surf and paddle board shop and Airbnb lodge with bar and eatery for surfers, cyclists and river enthusiasts.
"It's fun as husband and wife to be doing this together," Kate Thomas said. "We’re making a difference by taking eyesores and turning them into something the community can appreciate."
