In a press release, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced that the Government Services Administration had awarded a contract to PH LLC to construct the new Lakeland clinic. PH LLC is “doing business as Molasky Group of Cos. Inc., based in Las Vegas,” according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal.
The contract is worth about $112 million, said Shayna Rodriguez, a spokeswoman for James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital and Clinics.
According to the press release, the new clinic will be located close to 3550 Lakeland Highland Road, near the Sam’s Club and Holloway Park, but the address has not yet been finalized.
The clinic will be 92,600 square feet. Gary Clark, chairman of the Polk County Veterans Council, said that’s roughly five times bigger than the clinic currently in use at South Pipkin Road.
And he added that it’s sorely needed.
“We’re happy about it, finally. It’s just taken forever to get it,” Clark said. “The population of veterans in Polk County has never been well-served.”
“That’s four years,” Clark said. “We’ve won wars in less time.”
Clark said the South Pipkin clinic is severely overwhelmed with patients, which is why he’s disappointed the new clinic won’t start taking patients until 2024. The existing clinic currently serves 23,000 veterans, according to the press release.
Clark said the lag in getting the clinic open stems from a larger federal attitude.
“There’s an arrogance there and they really don’t give a damn about veterans,” Clark said.
Rodriguz said the hospital is considering ways to deal with overcrowding before the new clinic opens.
“These things take time,” Rodriguez said. “But in the meantime, we’re working on a decompression plan that would allow us a little more breathing room as we continue to provide care for these veterans.”
Rodriguez said they’re looking for space outside of the clinic to see more patients as the new clinic is built.
Though Clark wishes it would open sooner, he said he is particularly excited for Lake Wales veterans, who can now drive to Lakeland for care rather than traveling all the way to Tampa.
According to the press release, the new clinic will “consolidate and expand the VA’s current Lakeland leases, which include primary care and mental health clinics.”
Rodriguez said at the new clinic, primary care, mental health, and radiology will be expanded. And prosthetics and an eye clinic will be new services added at the facility.
Great News!