The Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services will buy land in southwest Oklahoma City to build a new mental health hospital. The move will replace Griffin Memorial Hospital in Norman.
The department’s governing board approved the purchase of three properties costing about $60 million. The funds come from the American Rescue Plan Act and must be spent by the end of 2026, according to an agency spokesperson.
Once renovated, the new inpatient mental health facility will offer up to 197 beds, an increase from the 120 available at Griffin Memorial. The largest site is the former Sisters of Saint Mary Health hospital campus at 2129 SW 59th Street. It includes a main complex, annex, and warehouse totaling over 190,000 square feet.
A second site at 5835 South Pennsylvania Avenue is a vacant medical office that will serve as project management offices. Chad Carden, the agency’s chief of operations, said this approach keeps project funds within the department instead of paying for rental trailers.
The third property is 1.6 acres of vacant land at 2149 SW 59th Street. Carden said it is ready for construction and could become part of the hospital campus in the future.
In the first phase of work, the agency plans to open 32 beds in the annex building by the end of 2025. A timeline for the full project has not yet been set.
The new hospital will eventually offer all of the same services now available at Griffin Memorial Hospital, which treats adults with severe mental illness.
An earlier project, the Donahue Behavioral Health Campus in Oklahoma City, was canceled after costs rose too high. Interim Commissioner Gregory Slavonic said that project would have cost $187 million, whereas the new campus will save taxpayer money.
Although the board has approved the land purchases, finalization of the transactions is still in progress.
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