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City considers letter of intent to buy clinic building for county clinic; new Frontier Health social worker assigned to police
Summary
City staff said they will pursue a nonbinding letter of intent to explore buying the building that houses the city clinic so the county could operate a local public health clinic, and announced a Frontier Health social worker has started work stationed in the police department.
City Manager Miss Bourgeois told the council the city is exploring a nonbinding letter of intent this week to purchase the building that currently houses the city employee clinic, with the goal of allowing the county to operate a public health clinic in Bristol. Bourgeois said the seller asked for a letter of intent and council concurrence to proceed with the nonbinding step; no formal council action was required at the Jan. 7 meeting.
Bourgeois described the letter of intent as nonbinding and an initial step while city and county staff continue to discuss funding arrangements and whether the city or the county will acquire the property and how space would be used. She said the building’s price is reasonable relative to current lease payments, and acquiring it could make financial sense for the city or county, but funding would need to be worked out.
In other items the city manager reported that staff will work with First Tennessee Development District on a preliminary application for an LPRF (Local Parks and Recreation Fund) grant for a potential aquatics facility; the application is in early stages and no formal commitment was made.
Bourgeois also announced that Monica Tucker, a social worker from Frontier Health, has started and is now housed in the Bristol Police Department. Tucker will work full time with officers on calls with mental-health components and will conduct proactive outreach downtown and elsewhere in the city. Bourgeois said the staffing arrangement has been under active development for about two years and is intended to provide wraparound support for officers and residents in crisis.
Council members discussed the benefits of a local county health facility for residents, particularly transit access concerns because the county health department currently is outside city limits; members expressed support for pursuing the letter of intent and for the new social worker assignment.
Councilors also raised community responses to cold-weather needs and sheltering, noting existing providers (Salvation Army, Haven of Rest) are often full and that warming-shelter staffing and logistics can be challenging. No formal vote was recorded on the warming-shelter discussion; it was a policy discussion among council members.
