PASCO COUNTY, Fla. – A Department of Veterans Affairs environmental assessment of sites that could one day be home to the proposed VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic found there would be “no significant adverse impact” to any of them from construction of the facility.
- Assessment shows no signs of negative impact
- Clinic to treat veterans with illnesses
- Production on clinic could start in 2019
“With a clinic this size, we’re going to have a lot more opportunities to engage the community in our warriors’ health care, and that’s the important part that I think we sometimes forget – the VA can’t do it alone,” said Brian Anderson, founder and CEO of Veterans Alternative. The group offers services for former servicemen and women struggling with PTSD, anxiety, and other issues.
The three sites addressed in the report are all along Little Road in the Trinity area. Two are at the southeast and northeast corners of Little Road and Ross Lane, and the third is at the northwest corner of Little Road and Massachusetts Avenue.
According to the assessment, a number of factors were evaluated to determine if establishing the CBOC there would negatively impact the environment or quality of life. It looked at how aesthetics, air quality, cultural resources, and a number of other areas would be affected.
New Port Richey Economic Development Director Mario Iezzoni said he’s been a supporter of the project since federal funding for it was announced about five years ago.
“My father is a Korean War veteran,” Iezzoni said. “I grew up on Army bases most of my life. I have absolute passion for these veterans.”
Still, Iezzoni said he’s not happy with the direction the project has taken.
“I think that the VA’s missing a real opportunity where the veterans actually live and where the services are badly needed,” he said.
The site Iezzoni referred to is that of the old Community Hospital on Marine Parkway in the city. He said the site already has some infrastructure in place and is close to other medical facilities, including one with a helicopter pad.
“This is in a community that was challenged when the hospital left there. I don’t know how you ignore a site that’s got a helicopter pad,” Iezzoni said.
According to Iezzoni, the site is also the most centrally located to West Pasco’s homeless veteran population and those who use VA services most. He said it was cut from consideration a number of times, most recently because a developer didn’t respond to a bid bond fast enough.
Anderson said the Community Hospital site is a good one but does believe there are other options.
“If I find it in a place that’s between Little Road and 19, I know it’s going to provide really good service for our warriors,” Anderson said. “The reality is that at some point, they just need to start digging and put in the foundation to make that possible and available to the men and women who need it.”
The VA’s environmental assessment states that construction could begin in 2019, and the first patients could be cared for in 2021.