Governor Greg Abbott is patting himself on the back again, this time for greenlighting $121 million to build a brand-new Lubbock Psychiatric Center. The 50-bed, maximum-security facility will be tucked off Peach Avenue near Highway 84 and is expected to open in 2027—because nothing says urgent mental health crisis response like “come back in two years.”
The 108,000-square-foot complex promises state-of-the-art design, healing vibes, and enough fencing, alarms, and video surveillance to make it feel more “Alcatraz” than “spa day.” State health officials say this will “help facilitate recovery,” which sounds a lot like corporate jargon for “don’t worry, we bought new locks.”
Abbott bragged about his $2.5 billion spree on psychiatric facilities statewide since 2017, with other cities like Amarillo, Dallas, and Wichita Falls already getting their own shiny new mental health fortresses. Lubbock’s just happens to be at the back of the construction line—because of course it is.
Fifty beds for a city where half the council meetings qualify as group therapy sessions? Better make those fences extra tall.
