A bill to transfer
Legislation could reopen site at Lake Baldwin campus
the vacant Veterans Affairs nursing home on the campus of the old Lake Baldwin site to the state finally passed on Tuesday, meaning the facility is possibly closer to opening.
It’s been a long time coming for U.S. Rep. John Mica, but his bill to transfer the vacant nursing home on the campus of Lake Baldwin VA to the state finally passed on Tuesday afternoon.
Mica, R-Winter Park, introduced House Bill 4056 last year to transfer the 20-year-old nursing facility from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs, which operates several other nursing homes in the state.
“The quickest way to get it open is to turn it to the state of Florida,” said Mica on a windy Tuesday morning during a news conference in front of the nursing home. “They will operate this for us. It will be less costly, more efficiently run, and we can get it open in record time to serve the veterans.”
The 120-bed nursing home on the Lake Baldwin campus closed two years ago, when its patients and staff were transferred to the new facility in Lake Nona. Since then, the facility has been used to transition and train employees, but not as a nursing home.
Mica said he has been inquiring about the future of the nursing home for four years — since he found out about the Lake Nona plans — to no avail.
“This is a good day for Central Florida Veterans,” said Mica before heading to Washington, D.C., on Tuesday morning, while anticipating the bill’s passage. The U.S. House passed the bill with a voice vote. The U.S. Senate still has to pass the measure.
The state VA currently runs six nursing homes and is building a seventh in Port St. Lucie. The state has built all the nursing homes from the ground up, with 65-percent of the funds coming from the federal government, said Steve Murray, spokesperson for the state VA.
The Lake Baldwin nursing home would be the first built
structure that the state would take over, turning the nursing home to a state-run facility with state employees. Officials expect that the building will need some work. They’re also planning to hire as many as 170 employees, from maintenance to nursing.
The nearest state-run VA nursing homes to Orlando are in Daytona Beach and Land O’ Lakes.
“The federal VA has its hands full,” Mica said. “Taking this out of their inventory is a step forward.”
Meanwhile, the 60-bed domiciliary on the Lake Baldwin campus, that also became vacant two years ago after its residents were transferred to Lake Nona, is expected to open by summer.
The 40-year-old building’s air-conditioning system has been upgraded, as has its cable and wiring, so that residents, many of whom will be homeless veterans, can use computers to access social services.
Mica’s bill is supported by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the state VA and national veterans organizations.