Have you ever felt bounced around, told to call one number, then another, then another, just to get the help you need?

For too long, San Diegans struggling with mental illness or addiction have been forced to navigate a maze of disconnected programs, overcrowded ERs, or even jail, without ever getting the complete care they were seeking.

That must change — and this past month, the County of San Diego submitted a bold proposal to build a first-of-its-kind Behavioral Health Wellness Campus right here in the Midway District, at the site of the former County Health Services Complex on Rosecrans Street.

Our goal: to bring care, recovery, and dignity under one roof.

If funded, this Wellness Campus would become one of the first in California to integrate mental-health and addiction treatment at every level of care from crisis stabilization to long-term recovery — creating one place where people can get help and get back on their feet without navigating a maze of bureaucracy.

Here’s what’s proposed for this headquarters:

• Crisis Stabilization Unit: Immediate help for adults in acute crisis.
  
  
• 24/7 Mental Health Rehabilitation: Round-the-clock treatment for serious mental illness.
  
  
• Peer Respite Housing: Safe, voluntary support for people in emotional distress.
  
  
• Residential Recovery: Medically monitored treatment for substance-use disorders.
  
  
• Outpatient Care: Therapy, case management, and prevention programs that keep people stable and connected.

If approved, the site could serve more than 20,000 San Diegans each year, offering help before situations spiral into homelessness, hospitalization, or incarceration.

Care Before Crisis, Made Real

This proposal builds on years of our work to flip the behavioral health system — expanding crisis-stabilization units, launching 24/7 mobile crisis response, and doubling residential treatment capacity countywide. 

Since 2021, we’ve increased the County’s behavioral-health budget by 40%, investing in prevention, treatment, and the workforce to deliver real results.

Now, we’re taking the next step — competing for up to $100 million in state Proposition 1 funding to make this campus a reality, with the County contributing the remainder locally.

Experts are already calling San Diego’s plan a model for California — a new standard for how counties can deliver care before crisis.

This is how we fix a broken system: by giving people a place to turn, and building a future where recovery is possible for everyone.