After years of planning and searching for funding, St. Johns County leaders just broke ground on a medical center in the historically underserved neighborhood of West Augustine.

With a population of around 6,600, the community just outside of St. Augustine city limits lacks a hospital or large medical center.

“The closest health facility is a hospital that is 5 miles away. Depending on the traffic, it might take you 30 minutes to get there,” West Augustine Historical Community Development Corporation President Greg White tells Jacksonville Today. “We know the problems. We’re bringing solutions.”

White founded the area’s community development corporation, an arm of county government that leverages funds to improve specific areas. He says West Augustine has higher incidence of heart failure, kidney failure, stroke, diabetes and infant mortality than surrounding areas, and he determined eight years ago that something needed to be done get people to care faster.

The result: The forthcoming health and wellness center at 938 West King Street that will offer wraparound services in partnership with UF Health, with not only physical health care but also mental health care and substance abuse treatment. Through a partnership with the YMCA, the center will also offer youth services.

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Construction is scheduled to begin next week on the 14,000-square-foot facility thanks to a $3 million infusion of money from the state and the county’s use of $5 million in federal COVID relief funding.

The center is scheduled to open in October 2025, but White is hoping they can fast track the project and begin seeing patients even sooner.