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On Monday, a new wellness hub opened in the site of a former nightclub associated with crime issues in East Tampa. It will offer a pharmacy, family health services, and a service to educate women of color about breast cancer awareness.
Dr. Vondalyn Wright wanted to help the East Tampa community.
“So we owned a nightclub, my husband and I owned a nightclub which was bringing nuisance to the area, so we decided that we wanted to do something positive. I’m a pharmacist by trade, I owned a pharmacy a few miles away, and we said that we were just going to transform this building from a nightclub to a medical center.”
It’s called The Well, and it received a development grant up to $350,000 from the Tampa Community Redevelopment Agency. Guido Maniscalco is the chair of the Tampa City Council and sits on the Community Redevelopment Agency board.
“When we say East Tampa deserves better, when we see institutions like The Well that are providing healthcare services, education, and what the community needs? This is a perfect example.”
State Representative Dianne Hart spoke at the ribbon cutting.
“As I return to Tallahassee, we will be advocating to get dollars to assist in The Well, because I know that you all will still need money, you always need additional resources.”
Hart sits on the House Health and Services Committee. The committee is set to have a panel discussion on hospital models in Florida on Thursday.
Last week, at a similar committee in the Senate, state officials recently defended criticism of Florida’s turbulent Medicaid redetermination process, where thousands were dis-enrolled.
