ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The city of St. Petersburg is using part of its American Rescue Plan Act funding to launch Community Support HUBS in different neighborhoods.

The first HUB officially opens Friday morning at 1427 22nd St. South in a neighborhood known as "The Deuces" in South St. Pete.

What You Need To Know

  • New Community Support HUB opens Friday, March 1 

  • Walk in basis from Monday through Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

  • Mental health and social services offered 

  • More: St. Pete Support HUBS

At this new location, residents can get mental health counseling and social services to help get back on track. In order to speak to a counselor or receive services, a resident needs to walk in Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Dr. LeDonna Butler, founder of The Well for Life, is helping to lead the new HUB location.

Butler said since the pandemic, more people are in need of mental health resources and in communities like South St. Pete, access to that type of care is hard for a variety of reasons.

She said she feels the city understood that if you embed mental health services into neighborhoods that are struggling and the provider is already known and trusted by the residents, then it can be productive.

“I think the best part of the HUB model is that it’s resident driven,” she said. “We selected this site after talking to residents about what’s most important to them and where they saw empty spaces and where they saw there were issues in the community.”

Butler said they selected the old reality office on the corner of 22nd St. S. and 15th St. S. for the HUB’s first location because of its proximity to the heart of the community and because it was a space that was blighted and in need of care.

“This was a place where people stayed who were navigating places to sleep, homelessness, substance use… navigating crime and violence. We’ve now reclaimed the space and made it beautiful,” she said. “They’re now coming inside instead of sleeping outside and asking for help.”

Nearly $11 million of the American Rescue Act funding that was awarded to St. Pete has been allocated towards health and social equity efforts, including the Community Support HUBS.

The city hopes to open multiple locations in different St. Pete neighborhoods by the end of 2026.