Lane County and PeaceHealth want to open a new behavioral health campus in Springfield. But before the project can move forward, the City of Springfield has to agree to annex the land.
The county is looking to build a stabilization center to serve adults and youth experiencing mental health crises. It’s secured around $44 million in funding so far, and it’s selected Connections Health Solutions to operate the facility.
It’s also partnered with PeaceHealth, which plans to build the Timber Springs Behavioral Health Hospital, a separate 96-bed inpatient facility which would be located next to the center.
Eve Gray, Lane County’s Health and Human Services Director, said the community is in significant need of more of these types of services, especially for young people and for those who are currently ending up in jail.
She estimates these facilities would create around 275 jobs and reduce the emergency department wait time at RiverBend by around 45 minutes.
“The stabilization center won't be licensed as an emergency room, but it will serve similarly to an emergency room for people who are in a behavioral health crisis,” said Gray. “And it’s on the same campus as the hospital, making it very easy to transfer folks who need a higher level of care.”
To accommodate the facilities, Lane County purchased a property off of International Way near the RiverBend hospital and sold a portion back to PeaceHealth.
But the site is currently outside of Springfield city limits, so it needs to be annexed before it can receive city services like police, fire, and municipal water. Gray said the project can’t move forward without this step.
At a meeting last week, the Springfield City Council signaled that it was likely to deny the request for annexation.
The majority of councilors said they were erring towards an interpretation of the city's comprehensive plan that city staff said wouldn’t have allowed this type of facility.
However, at a city council meeting Monday, councilors appeared to change course for now, deciding to move forward and discuss the other criteria required for annexation at future meetings.
“I think there’s a way to say ‘yes.’ There's a way to interpret it ‘no,’” Councilor Andrew Buck said at the meeting. “But at the end of the day, there's no disagreement that we need these services. And I think that if it was clear cut, we would have made a decision.”
Some councilors predicted there may be other issues with annexing this property under transportation criteria they haven’t yet discussed.
Springfield Mayor Sean VanGordon said they could reopen the record at a later date if they need more information about the proposal.
Gray said she felt there was a positive shift from Springfield City Council at Monday’s meeting.
At a Lane County Commissioner meeting the next morning, several commissioners expressed the importance of a partnership with the city.
“We need to make sure this is working for Springfield, so get everybody on board, making this as collaborative as possible,” said Commissioner Ryan Ceniga. “And it's not just for getting the building built, but it's for the building in the future.”
Even if the annexation is eventually approved, there are still hurdles the project may need to overcome.
Neighboring property owners, including Richardson Sports, are suing. They allege that a “supersite” law the Oregon legislature passed in 2025, which allows the facilities to avoid some zoning requirements, is unconstitutional.
If their suit is successful, it could block both projects from moving forward. Gray said rezoning is a long process that could invite community pushback to the facility.
Gray also said right now, the state’s definition of a stabilization center would not allow the county’s facility to serve patients who would be admitted involuntarily, which the county is currently planning for the facility to do.
But she said she’s confident that lawmakers will agree to tweak that language in the next legislative session.
Gray said the hope is to start groundbreaking on the facilities next spring, and open them both by 2029.
“We're working through all of the challenges that you work through in a big project that's going to change the face of healthcare in a community,” said Gray. “So we remain really excited about the outcome for our community.”
