LEWISTON – A new name, new address and new outreach effort are all coming together for a health care agency that has served the Tri-County area for decades.

Tri-County Health Services, soon to be called Western Maine Community Action Health Services, plans to throw open the doors of its new space Monday, Oct. 1. The agency is taking over the former offices of the Chamber of Commerce on Lisbon Street, in what was once the Montgomery Ward building.

“We’re looking forward to transferring into a professional, modern, medical facility, which better reflects what we are,” said Nancy Audette, program manager.

The hope is the street-level location, coupled with huge display windows, will help increase the agency’s visibility and attract new clients, said Audette. Tri-County served patients at its third-floor suite of offices at One Auburn Center on Main Street for more than 15 years. The agency delivers family planning and reproductive health care services to more than 4,000 people through its four locations.

About half those patients are from Lewiston-Auburn. Audette said the agency had more space than it needed at its downtown Auburn address, and staff wanted to be closer to residential neighborhoods to improve access to services.

So Audette began looking. Aware that funding from the federal and state sources that make up 30 percent of the agency’s income wasn’t likely to change, Audette knew she had to be careful. But the fact that Tri-County had space it wasn’t using meant she could look for a smaller facility and perhaps save money.

“It’s rare that a nonprofit can cut overhead costs,” she said.

But she has. The Lewiston location is 1,200 square feet less than the Auburn facility. And $1 less per square foot in lease fees.

“It makes a big difference over the course of the lease,” she said.

Glen Cyr of Midtown Mall, which manages the building, was glad to land the health care group. The offices had been vacant since early this year when the chamber moved to its new suite at the Business Service Center at KeyBank Plaza, also on Lisbon Street.

“We’re thrilled they’re here with us,” said Cyr. “We’re 100 percent full. You don’t see that often with downtown occupancy.”

The new facility will have two exam rooms, offices for private consultations and practitioners, a meeting room, a lab and a waiting area.

Audette said the street-level location is a great asset for an organization that welcomes walk-ins. The agency offers extended evening hours to increase its availability to patients.

And it’s trying to court new clients. Long a resource for younger women and those without insurance, the agency also provides care to midlife and middle-class folks – men included.

“There’s this idea that people only go there if they can’t afford to go anywhere else,” said Audette. “We think with our new professional space, it will help dispel that myth. We have highly skilled and very experienced nurse practitioners … it’ll be nice to have surroundings that reflect that.”

The new address coincides with a name change that had been considered for a long while. People often confuse the health care clinic with Tri-County Mental Health Services, said Audette.

The new name connects the agency to its parent agency, Western Maine Community Action, which has provided services ranging from fuel assistance to employment training to people in Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin counties since the 1960s.

“I know it’s a mouthful, but we’re very proud of our parent organization,” said Audette. “It has done a lot of good work.”