Springfield's City Council voted 5-0 to annex nearly 18 acres of land off International Way, clearing a major land-use hurdle for a planned behavioral-health campus that would pair a round-the-clock crisis stabilization center with a new psychiatric hospital. The site sits between Richardson Sportswear and the FedEx Ship Center, and if the projects stay on schedule, both could open by 2029.
The vote, confirmed by KLCC, formally brings the land into city limits so Lane County and PeaceHealth can move forward with construction plans. According to the station, “they voted 5-0 to annex the land,” setting up what officials describe as two connected facilities on the same campus: a Lane County stabilization center sitting next to a planned PeaceHealth hospital. As part of the annexation agreement, the site's owner will be required to work with Springfield Police and neighbors on safety and security plans, per KLCC.
The hospital project, known as Timber Springs, is PeaceHealth's planned behavioral-health facility for the campus, while the adjacent Lane Stabilization Center is described as the county's planned emergency behavioral-health site, according to KVAL. The station reports that Alicia Beymer, PeaceHealth's chief administrative officer, said staff from the health system's existing inpatient psychiatric unit are expected to move over to Timber Springs once it opens. That existing unit, located at PeaceHealth's University District campus in Eugene, currently has 35 beds, KVAL reports.
How Big Is the New Hospital?
Reports differ on exactly how many beds Timber Springs will have. KEZI has described it as “an 89-bed psychiatric hospital serving both adults and children,” while KLCC's earlier coverage characterized it as “a separate 96-bed inpatient facility which would be located next to the center.” What is confirmed is that the Oregon Health Authority approved Timber Springs' Certificate of Need application on October 15, clearing a key regulatory step, according to KEZI.
Next door, the Lane Stabilization Center is meant to function differently than a hospital. KEZI reports the center will offer walk-in mental health services, including medication refills, short-term crisis support and an observation unit, with the goal that people in crisis can access it immediately 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Together, the two facilities will allow people who need a higher level of care to transition from the stabilization center into treatment, per the same report.
Lane County has already secured around $44 million in funding for its stabilization center and has selected Connections Health Solutions to operate the facility, KLCC reported in September. The county hopes to break ground on the projects next spring, with openings by 2029, according to the station's more recent reporting.
Jobs, Training, and the Case for the Campus
Supporters have framed the campus as a way to keep struggling people out of jail and lower wait times at the RiverBend hospital, KLCC reports. The projected benefits vary depending on who is estimating them: KEZI reports that treating crisis patients at the stabilization center instead of RiverBend's emergency department will reduce ED wait times by over 40 minutes for each patient, while KLCC's September coverage cited Eve Gray, director of Lane County Health and Human Services, estimating the facilities could create around 275 jobs and reduce the emergency department wait time at RiverBend by around 45 minutes.
KVAL reports that the combined facilities are expected to create 275 jobs, per PeaceHealth, including nurses, mental health technicians, social workers, physicians, psychiatrists and non-clinical staff, with positions expected to be full-time, living-wage jobs. Gray told the station that local recruitment is a key strategy, and project leaders have brought together regional behavioral health providers and local schools for workforce discussions — conversations that led to grant funding to place students in project-related roles.
Those education pipelines reportedly include Lane Community College, which offers a mental health associate degree that can prepare graduates for case manager roles, alongside local nursing programs. The University of Oregon provides family therapist education, and Bushnell provides professional counselor education, according to KVAL. PeaceHealth plans to work with local schools, Lane Community College and Bushnell as the hospital opens and grows, and project leaders have also considered the hiring impact on Looking Glass and Oregon State Hospital, per the station's reporting. Staffing plans are built around minimum levels required to open and operate before reaching full capacity, with hiring expected to ramp up over time.
A Legislative Hurdle Still Ahead
The Lane County project also depends on changes to Oregon's crisis stabilization statute during the coming legislative session, according to KVAL. Oregon's current law prohibits a stabilization center from serving people who require inpatient treatment, and Gray said the state has not previously treated higher-acuity cases in an outpatient setting. State and federal governments have already invested millions of dollars in the project, the station reports, and Gray said she is optimistic the project will succeed.
For now, PeaceHealth's next milestone is design and recruiting, according to KVAL's reporting. Springfield's council approved the annexation the week before KVAL's article published, formally unlocking the next phase for a campus that, if it proceeds as planned, would bring a 24/7 walk-in crisis option and a new psychiatric hospital to the same stretch of International Way.
