It was once home to Huntersville Oaks, an aging, hospital-looking retirement facility owned by Carolinas HealthCare System (CHS). But the building was razed more than two years ago as CHS built a more modern, villa-style facility on adjacent property, and nature eventually — and quite efficiently — took over the site.
And now there is news that activity will return to that corner once again, as CHS has been given the green light by the state to construct a 66-bed psychiatric care facility there, scheduled to open some time in 2013.
The road to ultimate approval, however, was anything but a walk in the park. CHS' original proposal to build the hospital was first floated in April, when the system's officials told the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners the additional psychiatric beds would help relieve overcrowding at CMC-Randolph. That facility — owned by the county and operated by CHS under a $40 million annual contract — is regularly beyond capacity.
Additionally, hospital officials have said that a lack of psychiatric beds across the state means that those patients are often treated — inadequately — in standard hospital beds as they wait for room in psychiatric facilities. County officials balked at the idea, however, fearing an increase in beds locally would mean the loss of paying patients at CMC-Randolph.
That push-back from Mecklenburg County officials sent CHS to Raleigh, where the system successfully petitioned the N.C. General Assembly for a law that would enable CHS to proceed with its plans, even without the county's support or cooperation. In the aftermath of that action, the county canceled its contract with CHS, effective June 30, 2013.
The healthcare system announced the state's approval of its plan earlier this week, which means that the new CHS Huntersville facility's 66 beds will be transferred from Broughton Hospital in Morganton.
Once complete, the $33 million psychiatric care facility is expected to employ about 150 full-time staffers and will also offer outpatient behavioral health services.
— Lori Helms
