San Diego County recently received nearly $100 million from the state for behavioral health treatment.
The award was announced last Wednesday, with funding from Proposition 1, which voters approved in March 2024.
“It’s a milestone for behavioral health in San Diego County,” Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer said at a news conference Tuesday, celebrating the award.
The San Diego region is receiving $171 million, including $99.5 million for the county, which was the largest single award from the grant. Lawson-Remer said the money will go toward building a state-of-the-art Behavioral Health Wellness Campus in the Midway District.
It's replacing the vacant complex adjacent to the existing San Diego County Psychiatric Hospital. It is expected to add 210 new treatment beds for mental health and substance abuse treatments and a hub for crisis stabilization and outpatient care.
“For too long we had a fragmented system," Lawson-Remer said. "And still every single day, patients across San Diego County have to go sometimes one to five, 12 different places to get the treatment that they need.”
The county was one of three grantees in the region. The Pala Band of Mission Indians received $21.5 million for a substance abuse and mental health treatment center.
“We’re the first Native American tribe in Southern California to be awarded this grant.” Pala tribal Chairman Robert H. Smith said.
The center will be built near Chokla Mountain, also known as Gregory Mountain. Smith said it was vital to have mental health services on tribal land so the treatment stays connected to the culture.
“We want to keep them in their current surroundings, work with them with people they know, use traditional practices and help them get cured if we can with all the services we provide,” he said.
Chokla Mountain is considered sacred to the Luiseño people because it is believed to be the resting place of Takwish, a deity who keeps the balance between life and death. Smith said that’s also why it’s a good place for healing.”
“Just the nature of the oak trees, the mountain — everything is there is extreme nature," he said. "It just helps overall with the healing process.”
The facility is expected to open by September 2028 and will be open to all members of local Native American tribes.
Palomar Health was the third grantee in the region, receiving $50 million in restored funding for a 120-bed behavioral health campus in Escondido. The state rescinded the Round 1 award for the same amount in 2025 after Palomar failed to meet the matching-fund requirement.
