The Veterans Home of California
New Veterans Homes
Background
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs lists California as one of two states in “Great Need”
for additional Veterans Homes. The State’s voters, Legislature, and Governors all recognized this
critical need and responded. Enabling legislation (the Veterans Home Bond Act of 2000, AB 2559 [Wesson]
of 2002, and AB 1077 [Wesson] of 2004) has made funds available to develop and construct new Veterans
Homes in Lancaster, Ventura, West Los Angeles, Fresno, and Redding. These funds are the matching
requirement to receive a grant from the USDVA State Home Grant Program which provides the majority
of the project costs.
Why build in Lancaster, Ventura, West Los Angeles, Fresno, and Redding?
The process to locate new Veterans Homes in California has taken many twists and turns over the last
15 years. The Veterans Bond Act of 2000 specifies Lancaster and Ventura as communities in which new Homes
will be developed.
The USDVA’s Millennial Healthcare Act of 2000 changed the way projects eligible for State Home Grant
monies would be evaluated: simply put, new Veterans Homes receiving Grant funds would have to be
located near veteran population centers.
The development of new Homes in Lancaster and Ventura languished while the Legislature, Governor, and
USDVA wrangled over competing views of how best to serve deserving veterans. Finally, in 2002, an idea
surfaced which satisfied most parties and seemed to offer the best hope of providing additional Veterans
Homes services to veterans in the Los Angeles county region.
Monies were provided for the construction of three new Veteran Home campuses, two facilities in
Lancaster and Ventura, and a much larger facility in West Los Angeles on the grounds of the USDVA
Greater Los Angeles Medical Center. This met the requirements of both the Bond Act of 2000 and the
USDVA State Homes Grant Program. From this initial concept grew the Veterans Homes of California-Greater
Los Angeles/Ventura Counties project.
Fresno and Redding are both population and healthcare hubs of their underserved regions. The USDVA State
Homes Grant Program has accepted grant applications for both Homes. The Legislature made sufficient
funds available in 2004, but required that the funding for the Los Angeles area projects be assured
before development of these projects can fully begin.
What is GLAVC?
GLAVC is the acronym of the State’s newest Veterans Home project, Greater Los Angeles/Ventura
Counties. The full name is Veterans Homes of California-Greater Los Angeles/Ventura Counties,
i.e. VHC-GLAVC. Veterans Homes of California have traditionally been named after the community
in which they are located (VHC-Yountville, VHC-Barstow, VHC-Chula Vista.) GLAVC continues this
theme; the three new campuses are located in Greater Los Angeles County (Lancaster and West Los
Angeles) and Ventura County (Ventura).
What is the projected cost of VHC-Greater Los Angeles/Ventura Counties?
The total project cost of all three campuses was established the California Public Works board on
December 17, 2004 at $229,116,000. Funding will come from three sources, $31,000,000 in General
Obligation Bonds, $72,316,000 in Revenue Bonds, and a $125,800,000 grant from the USDVA State Homes
Grant Program.
Admissions Information
More infomation and images about GLAVC (Offsite link)
Construction Webcam at West Los Angeles (Offsite link)