County to spend $26 million renovating National City property for drug treatment

Nearly five years after an audit prompted the county to pick up a pair of aging buildings in National City, plans are moving forward to use the property for residential substance abuse treatment.

The county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday directed staff to advertise for a contractor to direct the renovation of about 33,000 square feet of space at 2300 E. 7th St. The project is estimated to cost $26 million, cash that would pay to correct "major mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems," and to modernize dormitory rooms and office spaces in buildings built in 1964 and 1985. The price tag also would include building an annex that would house kitchen and laundry facilities.

Construction is expected to begin in April 2025 with opening day expected in 2026.

Increasing the amount of residential substance use treatment available is a front-burner priority statewide as a new law, Senate Bill 43, expands the ability of law enforcement to pick up residents considered gravely disabled due to substance abuse. The supervisors intend to implement the law on Jan. 1, 2025, though there is currently significant concern that there are not enough treatment facilities available to meet demand.

The county took possession of the National City property in 2018 after a routine audit found nearly $7 million in "disallowed costs" associated with a contract for adult residential substance use treatment run by Volunteers of America Southwest California Inc.

Through negotiations, the county reduced that amount to $3.8 million and ended up taking the property in exchange for not attempting to claw back the remaining balance. Local Volunteers of America officials declined to discuss audit findings in 2018 though the organization's national headquarters did replace its local executive and install a new board of directors.

This story originally appeared in San Diego Union-Tribune .