City Councilor Renée Grout Calls for Accountability on Gibson Health Hub Expenditures

February 1, 2023

City Councilor Renée Grout, District 9, has requested a formal audit of all expenditures related to the purchase, design, and rehabilitation of the Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub. This comes after a preliminary accounting found that over $36 million has been spent so far, but with inconsistent expense tracking across several departments.

“The administration has been asking for funding for the Gibson Health Hub at every turn, but there’s never been a clear scope of work,” Councilor Grout said. “I thought this would be a simple query, but it has been anything but simple. There is a clear need for a full audit.”

The Office of Internal Audit’s preliminary research found that over $80 million has been appropriated to the Gibson Health Hub, gathered from State grants, 2019 and 2021 General Obligation Bonds, Capital budget appropriations, the American Rescue Plan, and the City’s General Fund. Of that, at least $36.7 million has been spent so far on purchasing and refurbishing the building, located at 5400 Gibson Blvd. SE.

“I want the Gibson Center to be successful – there’s a real need for a facility like this,” Grout said. “But if we’re going to spend $80 million, we need to be transparent about what it’s being spent on. We haven’t even begun to talk about how much it’s going to cost the taxpayers to operate this facility. As we’re getting ready for the next budget cycle, all of these things need to be considered.”

When completed, the Gibson Health Hub will offer services for unhoused people including housing navigation, case management, a first responder drop off center, a medical sobering facility, and medical respite care. It currently houses 50 emergency shelter beds.