The Virginia Beach City Council voted Friday to reserve 15 to 25 acres of city land as the site of a proposed Veterans Care Center in Hampton Roads. House Bill 1275, introduced by House Majority Leader Kirk Cox (R-Colonial Heights) and Delegate Chris Stolle (R-Virginia Beach), dedicates $28.5 million in funding for a proposed 240-bed long-term care facility to be located in the Hampton Roads area.
“Securing a potential site for the construction of the Hampton Roads area veterans care center is a milestone step in our efforts to complete this project,” said Cox. “The Commonwealth needs additional veterans care centers to provide quality long-term care to our veterans. The Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia facilities are two of our top legislative priorities this year. Thank you to the City of Virginia Beach for its continued cooperation and commitment to this important project. We look forward to continuing to work with Governor Terry McAuliffe, Virginia’s senators and members of congress to move these new care centers up the federal priority list.”
The resolution passed by City Council was requested by Delegate Stolle. The full resolution can be viewed here.
“Virginia Beach is home to tens of thousands of active-duty and retired armed forces members. Dedicating land for this important project is another example of just how committed this city and its leaders are to caring for our nation’s heroes,” said Stolle. “I thank City Council for its continued cooperation on this important project. I believe very strongly that Virginia Beach is the right location for a Hampton Roads care center and look forward to making that a reality very soon.”
Virginia currently has Veterans Care Centers in Salem and Richmond. Veterans Care Centers are state-of-the-art facilities that provide high quality, long-term care to veterans. Virginia is home to over 800,000 veterans, the seventh-highest total of any state, but ranks 44th in the ratio of veterans to available care centers. Virginia first authorized funding for the Hampton Roads care center in 2006, and the Northern Virginia care center in 2008. Through the efforts of Del. Rich Anderson (R-Prince William) two sites have been identified for the Northern Virginia Care Center, one in Innovation Park, Prince William County and another site on George Mason University’s Prince William County Campus. However, both projects have been stalled at the federal level. Care centers are built with 65 percent federal funding and 35 percent state funding.