Acadia Healthcare issued permit for foundation of behavioral hospital in St. Augustine

Acadia Healthcare can begin construction on a two-story, 99,485-square-foot behavioral hospital with 144 beds in St. Augustine.

St. Johns County issued a permit Sept. 9 for the hospital's foundation at a project cost of $1.3 million.

The building will be served by a parking lot and stormwater infrastructure controlled by two stormwater ponds, according to the application.

Brentwood, Tennessee-based Crunk Engineering LLC is the engineer. Acadia Health owns the 6-acre-property at 132 Moonbay Parkway, through 210 Safari, LLC, off Old County Road 210, east of Interstate 95.

Headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee, Acadia Healthcare was established in January 2005 to develop and operate a network of behavioral health facilities across the country.

Acadia provides psychiatric and chemical dependency services to patients in various settings, including inpatient psychiatric hospitals, specialty treatment facilities, residential treatment centers, outpatient clinics and therapeutic school-based programs.

According to its mission statement, Acadia Healthcare aims to create behavioral health centers where people receive care that enables them to regain hope in a supportive caring environment.

As of June 30, 2024, Acadia operated a network of 258 behavioral healthcare facilities with approximately 11,400 beds in 38 states and Puerto Rico.

With more than 23,500 employees serving about 75,000 patients daily, Acadia says it is the largest stand-alone behavioral health company in the U.S. offering services including inpatient psychiatric hospitals, specialty treatment facilities, residential treatment centers and outpatient clinics.

Acadia Healthcare agreed to a $19.5 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice on Sept. 26. The settlement is related to allegations of fraudulent billing under federal health programs, and the funds are to be disbursed between federal and state entities. Upon news of the settlement, the stock was down over 20%.

Block & Leviton is investigating Acadia Healthcare Co. Inc. for potential securities law violations. Investors who have lost money in their Acadia Healthcare investment should contact the firm to learn more about how they might recover those losses.