MUSKEGON, Mich. — Construction work is underway in Muskegon on a new, multi-million dollar medical center for veterans off of East Apple Avenue and Walker Street.
The nearly $14 million community-based outpatient center is being funded through the Battle Creek VA Medical Center, and officials are hoping this clinic will provide a modern and efficient healing environment for the veterans who visit.
"The need alone is very present," Sarah Misner-Castaneda says.
Construction is still in its early stages, and the marine veteran is already looking forward to the end result.
"It's amazing. It's really nice to see the effort that has been brought forth for the Muskegon county population of veterans," Misner-Castaneda says.
It's estimated that there are 12,000 veterans living in Muskegon county.
"I think the population will be impacted not just here in Muskegon County, but in the surrounding counties," Misner-Castaneda says. "We do have veterans coming from other counties to use our facilities."
This facility will be double the size of the current outpatient clinic for veterans over on Hakes Drive. Both through her own experience and her work with WINC: For All Women Veterans, she knows a larger, higher tech clinic will have a big impact.
"We're looking at hopefully less wait times, for appointments with specialists with primary care. I think that's very important when we address the physical and mental health of our county and surrounding county veterans," Misner-Castaneda says.
Battle Creek VA Chief of Communications Brian Pegouske says they serve more than 5,000 veterans in the Muskegon area.
"We expect that to continue to grow over the next couple of years, and we certainly hope that more veterans reach out and enroll in the care they earned," he says.
"To start, it will have the same services of primary care, mental health, social work, tele health and home-based primary care, but we'll have room to look at expanding some additional specialty care into that clinic that we do not have the room for currently."
The clinic is expected to open next spring.
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