State Veterans Home to get $2.6 million in renovations

Published 12:00 am Saturday, April 21, 2018

SALISBURY — The State Veterans Home in Salisbury is one of three projects in North Carolina to receive construction funding from Congress.

U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, announced Thursday that he secured $53 million for the construction projects through the VA State Veterans Home Construction Grant Program.

The $53 million will go toward the following projects:

• Salisbury VA Home: $2.6 million for renovations to the day room, patio, main entrance, heating and air conditioning system, electrical, flooring, walls, lighting, nurse stations and dining facilities.

• Wake County: $25.2 million for a new 120-bed facility.

• Guilford County: $25.2 millions for a new 120-bed facility.

Last year, Tillis led an appropriations letter to key appropriations leaders to urge they provide robust funding for the VA State Home program.

“Over the last 50 years, the State Veterans Home Construction Grant Program has been one of the most successful and cost-effective programs serving the long-term care needs of our nation’s veterans,” said Tillis. “I want to thank interim VA Secretary (Robert) Wilkie and the Department of Veterans Affairs for allocating these important funds that will provide critical resources to ensure our aging veterans have a place to receive the care they need and deserve.”

The $53 million ensures all of North Carolina’s projects are fully funded and is part of nearly $700 million that will be used to fund 52 projects throughout the nation, according to Tillis’s office.

The $700 million is part of a budget bill that represents the largest allocation to the State Veterans Home Construction Grant Program ever. The program has averaged $94 million over the past five years.

The grant program provides as much as 65 percent of the cost to build and renovate VA facilities.