The two-story, Spanish-style building will house:
• UF Health St. Johns for primary care
• Wildflower Clinic for uninsured patients
• EPIC Behavioral Healthcare for mental health and substance use
• Youth Crisis Center for diversionary youth services
• YMCA for physical wellness and prevention programs
Mike Davis, the local builder leading construction, recalls the project’ s early days.“ Anytime Greg White asks you to do something, that ' s the only why you need,” he said.“ This is a very important project for West Augustine— whatever I can do to help.”
Davis and others donated their time in the planning phase— a critical gift.“ Had Mike charged me or Gerald [ Chester ] charged, we never would have been able to get the baseline information that led to it eventually happening,” White noted. Gerald Chester, president of the
Mike Davis
Central Florida CDC, helped develop the original business plan and health strategy.“ We wanted to build a healthy village— addressing economic, behavioral and medical health,” Chester said. Using county health assessments and firsthand data, Chester designed a model that emphasized integrated care in a walkable setting.
“ We found there was no rehab, no preventive measures in the community,” Chester explained.“ People were using the emergency room for non-emergency care. So we built a model that would work— with medical, behavioral health, wellness and youth services all under one roof.”
Mark Bailey, a St. Augustine native and one of the project’ s key funders and advocates, said the idea struck a nerve.“ This community has been overlooked for too long,” he said.“ We are one of the most affluent counties in the state, and yet there are people here who can’ t access basic care. That’ s unacceptable.”
Mark Bailey
Bailey recalled how a conversation about relocating a monument downtown led to deeper conversations with White.“ Greg and I were just talking,” he said.“ And he started to describe the clinic. I told him we’ d helped open one in the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian. I knew how important this could be.”
He and his wife, Alicia, became deeply invested.“ She really latched onto it,” Bailey said.“ We’ ve been involved in a lot, but we said— it’ s time to turn our energy to helping this community.”
Funding for the center includes $ 5 million from St. Johns County and $ 3 million from the State of Florida. But as Chester put it,“ This doesn’ t happen without the leadership of someone like Greg White. The issues existed, but if you didn’ t have someone waving a flag and leading the parade, this thing wouldn’ t have happened.”
Still, White insists the building is just the beginning.“ Now we have to deliver on the promise,” he said. The CDC will hire a full-time facility manager to act as a navigator, directing residents to the right service— whether that’ s UF Health, EPIC or the YMCA.
Chester emphasized the long-term impact.“ We’ re going from a small budget to an $ 8 million asset. That takes training, staffing, accountability,” he said.“ The work starts now.”
The Center is expected to serve a rapidly changing population.“ We already know that the community is shifting,” Chester said.“ There’ s a growing elderly population and an income diversification underway. This Center is built for the people who live here now— and those who will come.”
White and his partners are now focused on community outreach.“ We ' re going to every African- American church— 40 plus— in the underserved area,” White said.“ We want people to know this center is for them. Walk here. Bike here. Get help here.”
For those who have followed the long arc of the project, this moment is about more than brick and mortar.“ I’ m most proud of the partnerships,” White said.“ Because that’ s what made this possible. It’ s not just about the building. It’ s about what’ s happening inside— and the lives it will change.”
Davis agreed:“ When we call the fire department or the county for help and mention this project, people jump. Everybody wants this to succeed.”
And Bailey sees this not just as a win for West Augustine, but for the entire region.“ It’ s about lifting up the whole community,” he said.“ We don’ t want a handout. We want a hand up.”
As the walls rise and services prepare to launch, the West Augustine Health and Wellness Center stands as a testament: to leadership, to community and to the power of showing up— for 15 years and counting.
Gerald Chester
Howard Holley is Co-Founder and CEO of TouchPoint Innovative Solutions and Co-Publisher of EVOLVE Magazine.
JUNE / JULY 2025 | 21 |