RICHARDSON — The City of Richardson has approved its first-ever health and wellness village to be built near downtown, centered around the needs of mothers and children while also providing experiences everyone can enjoy.
Dr. Courtney Gowin is passionate about helping mothers and babies. At The Nest in Addison, she is a chiropractor providing services for pregnancy, birth and beyond, a dream that became a reality when she found a building listing on Craigslist 10 years ago.
“The basement was a rental property, so I spoke to the woman and she literally took the risk on me,” she said.
Initially, she only had enough space to provide chiropractic care.
“Then two years later, I was given the opportunity to take over three entire floors and build a 3,000-square-foot maternal and child health center in four weeks,” Gowin said.
Services have expanded to include pelvic floor physical therapy, acupuncture, massage therapy and functional nutrition. But most importantly, Gowin says it’s created a community.
“The funny thing is, when I opened this store I was suffering from severe post-natal depression and the unity of the community helped me get out of it,” she said.
She has seen firsthand the impact Nest has had on not only herself, but other mothers as well.
“She actually has some friends who come here, so it’s more of a social event,” her mother, Libby Cook, said.
“Being a new mom can make you feel like you’re in survival mode, so having access to Dr. Courtney and all of her staff here and the other offices is really helpful,” her mother, Lin Huang, said. “It helps me not feel alone or like I’m going through all of this alone.”
Gowin said demand is now at an all-time high, so she’s once again making plans to expand.
“We see about 1,200 patients a month and 80 percent of them live in Richardson, so it just made sense to create this facility in Richardson,” she said.
She found a piece of land near downtown Richardson and the idea started to take shape. She contacted the owner of the property.
“It wasn’t even for sale, but I knocked on his door in the middle of the night and said, ‘Hey, I know you don’t know me, but if you ever want to sit down and talk, let me know,'” she said.
She says he liked her vision for creating The Nest Wellness Village at the southeast corner of East Kaufman and South Texas.
“This home was truly designed with the community that Magnolia has built in Waco and the beauty of Flora Farms in Cabo in mind,” she said.
The project will be centered around a 4,000-square-foot main building, surrounded by a large green space and bungalows. An art gallery, bakery, community garden, outdoor market, restaurants and retail space are some of the proposed uses. All funding will be provided by private backers.
“I think this is going to be a great place for people to walk to,” Richardson City Councilwoman Jennifer Justice said, “It’s focused on motherhood, but some of the things you’re saying you’re going to put here will be really good for all of our residents.”
Last month, the Richardson City Council unanimously approved plans for a multi-use health and wellness center.
“It feels surreal but at the same time really exciting,” Gowin said.
She hopes this will serve as a reminder to others that no matter how big your dreams are, they’re not enough.
“If the why is more important than the how, then you can be sure that you’ll take that step and things will work out,” Gowin said.
More details here: Nest Wellness Village
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Erin Jones
