City Hires Key Staff for the Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub
October 25, 2021
The City of Albuquerque’s Family and Community Services Department has made several key hires to help launch the Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub. The Gibson Health Hub will provide services to the surrounding community that promote health, healing, and recovery. The Gateway Center will be one component of Gibson Health Hub, providing emergency shelter to women, men and children and to serve as a “gateway” to services and permanent housing.
“The Gateway Center is our boldest, most significant investment yet to address our city’s homelessness challenges and connect folks to needed services,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “We’re putting the right team in place for the Gateway Center’s success, and bringing these experienced leaders on board is a crucial step as we move towards launch.”
“We’re thrilled to have this team in place to help us shape the Gateway Center and continue to connect with the community,” said Carol Pierce, Director of Family and Community Services. “Each person’s unique experience will add so much value to our department and our shared goals for the Gateway Center.”
Cristy Hernandez joins the City as the new Administrator of the Gateway Center. Hernandez comes to Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub with extensive experience serving people experiencing homelessness with severe mental illness. She will oversee the implementation of the Gateway Center and lead community outreach efforts and coordination of services.
“This is a wonderful opportunity to bring together organizations from across Albuquerque who are committed to helping the unhoused and to create a physically and emotionally safe place for service,” Hernandez said.
At the Gateway Center at Gibson, many decisions will be driven by GIS data, interviews with individuals who have lived experience, and other data collected once the shelter is operational. FCS has hired Cristina Parajón as the new Gateway Systems Analyst to establish a data-informed strategy for services. She comes to the city from a strategic advising firm where she drafted data governance policy, and speaks English, Spanish and Mandarin.
“When we understand the data, we will all be empowered to make the decisions that we need to at the Gateway Center to make sure that we can deliver the right services at the right times,” Parajón said.
Three additional staff will support Gibson Health Hub as a whole, including the Gateway Center component.
Doug Chaplin expands his role within the Department of Family and Community Services as Operations Director at Gibson Health Hub. Chaplin brings his vast knowledge of city government, budgetary and planning experience to this post. Chaplin was previously the Director of the Department of Family and Community Services and has been with the City of Albuquerque for over 20 years.
“We are hard at work at the Gibson Health Hub and Gateway Center to get it fully operational,” said Doug Chaplin. “We have some great tenants already in this facility and we look forward to adding even more as the Gibson Health Hub takes shape.”
To make sure the Gibson Health Hub, including the Gateway Center, can physically support providing services, Vicente Martinez has been hired as Facilities Manager. He will oversee the maintenance and facility operations of Gibson Health Hub. Martinez has served the City since 2009, most recently as a Senior Project Coordinator, where he performed project management duties for new development. He also maintains a GB-98.
“I’m looking forward to keeping everything at the Gateway Center and Gibson Health Hub in tip-top shape so we can serve the needs of our guests and the larger community. This is a big project and I’m grateful to be part of it,” Martinez said.
Charley Salas-Ramos will be transferring to the Gibson Health Hub from the Department of Municipal Development as Facilities Asset Manager. Salas Ramos has served the city in a variety of capacities since 1998 and will lend her expertise to the project, which has many moving parts and a variety of tenants.
“I’ve worked with the City on several large projects, and we will work to make sure the Gibson Health Hub has all of the resources it needs to succeed,” Salas-Ramos said.
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