From the Queens Chronicle:The years-long fight to prevent the Department of Veterans Affairs from privately developing part of the St. Albans VA site appears to have come to an end. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-Queens and Nassau) announced today that as a result of Congressional opposition, the agency will abandon its proposal.
Many veterans and their advocates have long opposed the project, in which a private developer would replace the existing facilities with a new nursing home, rehabilitation domiciliary and expanded outpatient facilities in exchange for a long-term lease on part of the site, where it would put up housing and stores open to the general public. Instead they want a full-service hospital there, so servicemen and women in Queens and Nassau counties don’t have to travel to Brooklyn, Manhattan or Suffolk County for care.
On June 13, the House of Representatives passed the Veterans Care Act, by a vote of 411-5, an amendment to a military appropriations bill that would have blocked the project. It was introduced by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Jamaica) and Rep. Peter King (R-Nassau).
10 comments:
Only assinine New Yorkers consider pissing away federal construction dollars a victory. You can bet money the VA will now find a way to shutter the whole complex within 3 years. Nice going guys. Congratulations.
"Only assinine New Yorkers consider pissing away federal construction dollars a victory."
What do you know about the needs of the vets?
The biggest problem with the VA is that their facilities are few and far between. I'm lucky, the one closest to me is only 25 miles away. Some people are 100 or more miles from proper care.
Federal construction dollars? This was going to be built by a private developer.
Apparently this sort of thing has already been done out in L-A:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/06/27/eveningnews/main20074834.shtml
One thing about the LA area is that there are numerous active military bases in the immediate area. Retirees often can use active bases for medical care. Thus the burden on the VA facilities there.
NYC has very few active military installations, if any.
anon-1
OK you made a fool out of me. I didn't bother to read the article. After reading it, it's quite non-sequitor and has the tone of anti-war rhetoric.
ew-3 said...After reading it, it's quite non-sequitor and has the tone of anti-war rhetoric.
-This idiot must look under his bed for "commies" each night.
Where-oh-where might one find "anti-war rhetoric" in that piece?
"-This idiot must look under his bed for "commies" each night."
Guess veterans view things differently then those too concerned with their own well being to serve.
ew-3 said...Guess veterans view things differently then those too concerned with their own well being to serve.
Only the paranoid-delusional ones.
ew-3:
Point taken, but you didn't answer the question of where the "anti-war rhetoric" was.
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