Shasta County supervisors voted Oct. 24 to support a letter opposing a proposed $200 million behavioral health campus — a move that could jeopardize the project’s chances for state funding.
The True North Behavioral Health Campus, proposed by privately run Signature Healthcare Services and backed by local nonprofits, is seeking a $150 million state grant through California’s Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program. Supporters say the project would create hundreds of jobs and add much-needed beds for people experiencing mental health crises. They also note it would not require county funding.
Shasta County Health and Human Services director Christy Coleman disagrees. In a letter to the state, she said the proposed facility would not meet the county’s most urgent behavioral health needs and could create new administrative and financial burdens.
Supervisor Kevin Crye called a special meeting for the board to vote on whether to support Coleman's letter. The motion passed 3-2 after a lengthy debate and a packed public comment period.
Coleman said the facility would not include space for high-acuity patients — those with severe conditions that require specialized care — which the county lacks.
“We have a need. What I'm saying is this is not the need we have,” Coleman said at the Oct. 24 board meeting. She said the county already has unfilled bed space for the type of patients Signature hopes to treat.
Coleman also said the facility, though state-funded, would still cost the county. Her department would be required under law to provide support and regulatory services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries treated at the campus.
“We will have to grow our teams, regardless of the contract size that we have with this facility, because we are the Medi-Cal administrator for the county,” Coleman said.
Coleman also worried that the regional nature of the project could attract out-of-county patients.
“There isn't a guarantee that they will go back to their other counties,” she said. “They can't just be held when the hold is up. And so they do have the opportunity to walk out the door and not wait for their county to come pick them up.”
A statement from the nonprofit Arch Collaborative said Coleman’s letter misrepresents key facts about the project.
“This project is a lifeline to break the cycle of systemic crisis, stabilize what remains for our heroic frontline staff, bring in a nationally recognized leader in high-acuity care, and finally make help available here at home,” Kimberly Johnson, CEO of Arch Collaborative, said in the statement.
Supervisor Allen Long, who opposed the motion, questioned the timing of the board’s involvement.
“What's the rush? What's the hurry to turn down $200 million?" Long asked. He argued the county could support the grant application and address the potential costs in the months to come.
In response, Crye told a story from the Bible about Joshua killing hidden adversaries.
“And here's what that symbolizes: You don't entertain what is evil, what is wrong, what is not the right path,” Crye said.
According to the grant application, only a letter of support from the county’s behavioral health agency is needed.
It was unclear to Long why the board was getting involved at all.
“If there's any way, shape or form — any glimmer that we can kill this now… I want to put it down,” Crye said. “I want to put it down, so it never infects our county.”
The True North project has dozens of letters in support of the grant application, according to the Arch Collaborative, including statements from regional health officials and law enforcement.
It’s unknown if Signature will continue with its grant application after Coleman’s opposition letter and the board's vote to support it
