VA nursing home would be built with Collier County sales tax increase

Collier County may use a sales tax increase to try to skip to the front of the line the next time the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or state VA  builds a nursing home.

The proposed 1 percentage point tax increase, which would need to be approved by voters in November, would raise an estimated $420 million over seven years.

County commissioners will consider a proposal Tuesday to set aside $50 million of that proposed increase to help build a VA nursing home.

But even with that $50 million in the bank, there's no guarantee the state or federal governments would choose to build a nursing home for veterans in Collier County.

The Florida VA is in the process of opening its seventh and eighth nursing homes in the state, in Orlando and along the Treasure Coast.

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"Those are the only two in the pipeline," said Steve Murray, spokesman for the Florida VA. "It's hard to say what will happen exactly, but there are a number of counties preparing themselves for any future opportunities."

County Commissioner Burt Saunders said he hopes that if Collier sets aside money to help build a VA nursing home, it will make it hard for the state to say no to the county.

The $50 million should be enough to buy land near a hospital and cover the state's share of building the nursing home. The federal VA typically requires the state to kick in 35 percent of construction costs. If the tax is approved by voters, Collier County would pick up that tab.

"By having those two components in hand, we would be able to go to federal VA and say that we have the local match and we have the land identified and money to buy it; we're ready to proceed," Saunders said.

Collier County has long eyed a nursing home to help meet the needs of its roughly 21,000 veterans who are older than 65.

Collier lost out to the Treasure Coast in 2014, when the state opted to build its latest 120-bed home in Port St. Lucie rather than in Southwest Florida. The VA will break ground on the facility in the next few months.

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The need is great throughout the state. With an estimated 1.5 million veterans, Florida has the third-most veterans in the country, behind only California and Texas.

"By its own analysis, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs calculates that Florida only has 20 percent of the VA-sponsored nursing home beds it needs," said county spokesman Daniel Christenbury.

Florida should have 4,909 beds available for the state’s veterans but has just 810, Christenbury said.

While money can be an obstacle, one of the main concerns in choosing a site to build a home is the location, Murray said.

"We look for areas underserved by state veteran homes, and we look for the proximity of federal VA medical centers and outpatient clinics," Murray said. "We do independent studies every 10 years or so to show where the greatest need is."

While Collier came close in 2014, it has never topped the state's list.

The state operates VA nursing homes in Port Charlotte, Broward County, St. Augustine, Panama City, Land O' Lakes and Daytona Beach.

In addition to serving veterans, a home in Collier County would create a few hundred jobs, Saunders said.

"We're not making this investment to increase employment, but these are job creators," Saunders said.

"We have a huge number of veterans, aging veterans. The need is great. This is doable — to have a facility right here."