It would be for groups suffering from the effects of inequality and would unite many services under one roof, she said.
Assistance with housing, education, training and diet would be given alongside a low-cost GP service.
Whanau Ora agency Te Putahitanga had approved funding for the centre, but the exact amount had yet to be negotiated, Ms Matahaere-Atariki said.
It was hoped Maori health provider Arai Te Uru Whare Hauora would shift from Tennyson St to the new centre, which might be based in the former College St School in Caversham.
Interested parties were meeting next week, including a GP service and University of Otago health sciences pro vice-chancellor Prof Peter Crampton.
''We're going to sit round the table and map out what it looks like. At the end of that, some might say it's not for them, and that's fine.''
It could open as early as September.
''Too many of the high [deprivation] groups are just churned through services.''
Ms Matahaere-Atariki, of Dunedin, said the service would co-ordinate help for people, and not just refer them to services.
One of the aims of the Whanau Ora programme was reducing duplication, with the often-cited example of the tendency to have ''five cars up the driveway'' representing different agencies helping the same family, she said.
''I don't mind five cars up the driveway if they're delivering something.''
However, that was not the case ''when you've got five cars up the driveway and they're just clipping the ticket''.
Prof Crampton, who is chairman of the centre's establishment board, said it would apply for Very Low Cost Access funding to keep patient fees low.
''The practice will complement other general practices which operate in Dunedin and will keep its focus on low-income families,'' he said.
