Planning commission approves San Joaquin County plan for SJB Well behavioral health campus, sends project to Board of Supervisors

The San Joaquin County Planning Commission voted 5-0 on Aug. 7 to approve a general plan map amendment and a specific plan to allow construction of the SJB Well behavioral health campus in the French Camp community, moving the project to the Board of Supervisors for final consideration on Aug. 12.

The amendment would change the general plan designation and zoning of an 18-acre site at the northwest corner of South Eldorado Street and Hospital Road to a mixed-use designation and adopt a specific plan to guide development of a multi-building behavioral health campus. "This project includes 2 land use applications to establish a comprehensive behavioral health campus to serve San Joaquin County," Stephanie Stowers, principal planner, told the commission during the staff presentation.

According to Stowers, at full buildout the campus is expected to total "5 75-ish thousand square feet" and provide roughly 500 beds. The project is proposed to be built in two sections, a South Campus expected in the first phase and a North Campus for longer-term transitional housing. The applicant and county staff described components planned for the site including a 16-bed psychiatric health facility, a crisis stabilization unit, an alternative-destination sobering center, 24/7 nonmedical behavioral urgent care, adolescent and adult residential substance-use treatment programs, and a community building with outpatient services and an on-site medical urgent care clinic operated by San Joaquin health clinics.

Genevieve Valentine, County Healthcare Services director, described the project as a coordinated response to gaps countywide. She said county feasibility work and partnerships with the Health Plan of San Joaquin showed a shortage of local substance-use treatment resources and frequent use of emergency rooms for behavioral health crises. "There are only 2 currently in the entire state of California," Valentine said of comparable alternative-destination models, and said the campus would reduce out-of-county placements and provide supports that can keep parents and families together.

Stowers told commissioners the project has been reviewed under the California Environmental Quality Act and an initial study found that all impacts can be reduced to less-than-significant levels through mitigation measures captured in a mitigation monitoring and reporting program. As a mitigation measure the project will participate in the San Joaquin Council of Governments' multi-species habitat conservation plan to address state and federal endangered-species requirements. The staff recommendation also includes agricultural mitigation requirements for rezoning agricultural land, to be satisfied through a farmland conservation easement or similar mechanism.

Public comment was uniformly supportive. Kim Robinson, a recent county retiree who worked at Mary Graham Children's Shelter, described the campus as a potential legacy project and said local youth lack nearby residential treatment options. Neighbor Subad Meany, who said his property borders the site, said he was pleased the project is coming to his neighborhood. Fire District Chief Marty Cornelison said the French Camp McKinley Fire District has previously submitted comments and is working with county staff to address service and safety issues.

Commissioners praised the proposal during discussion. One commissioner, speaking of personal experience treating patients in the field, said the facility would provide needed alternatives to emergency-room care. Community Development Director Jennifer Jolley and county staff praised cross-departmental collaboration and said much of the South Campus funding is already secured; exact funding amounts were not specified in the hearing.

Votes at a glance: - General Plan Amendment PA 2400483 and Specific Plan Amendment PA 2400484 (SJB Well behavioral health campus): motion to adopt staff recommendations with five recommended conditions — approved 5-0 (Commissioners Milas, Rufsaller, Rhodes, Tuohy Tabuki, Roosthauer recorded as yes). The project will be forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for final action on Aug. 12. - Continuance of agenda item No. 2: motion to continue item No. 2 to a future meeting — approved (roll call recorded yes by present commissioners; mover/second not specified). - Continuance of election of officers to the next meeting: motion to continue election of officers — approved (recorded yes by present commissioners).

Next steps and context: The project, which staff said had been planned commercially in the county's 2035 General Plan but kept in a holding agricultural zone, will go to the Board of Supervisors on Aug. 12. If approved by the board the specific plan would provide long-range development standards for the campus instead of conditional-use permits, allowing the county and project partners to pursue grant funding and phased construction. The staff report, environmental initial study, mitigation monitoring program and proposed conditions of approval remain the primary documents guiding mitigation and implementation.

Details that remain to be resolved include final funding sources and project phasing timelines; staff told commissioners that the South Campus funding is largely in place but did not provide dollar amounts. The timeline for construction, licensing for the psychiatric health facility, and details of partnerships with the Health Plan of San Joaquin, San Joaquin health clinics, and other providers were not specified at the hearing.