VA breaks ground on new veterans hospital in Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - On Veterans Day 2021, roughly 15 years after the United States Department of Veteran Affairs announced plans to build a new hospital in Louisville, the project took its first step toward being built.

The 34-acre plot of land on Brownsboro Road, just off of Interstate 264, will soon transform into a 910,115 square foot medical center.

It hasn’t been an easy journey. Whether it’s about traffic or accessibility, the project hasn’t been well accepted by everyone in the neighborhood. After the land was purchased by the federal government in 2012, immediate red flags were raised by neighbors. The project has even been subject to lawsuit.

”People can rightfully worry about traffic,” Gov. Andy Beshear, who was on site for the groundbreaking Thursday, said. “But at some point this had to be done. Our commitment to our veterans is bigger than ourselves.”

Overall, the VA plans on offering health care to veterans in a way they cannot at the current facility.

The non-partisan effort to build the hospital in Louisville has had strong support from elected officials in the time it’s taken to get to the current point.

“This took way longer than we had hoped,” Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) said, “but rather than dwell on it, we celebrate that we finally are beginning after all these years.”

Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Louisville) echoed the sentiment.

“This may not be government at its fastest but it’s government at its finest,” Yarmuth said.

Yarmuth had just taken office in 2006 when the VA announced plans to build the new hospital in Louisville, “and I’m happy that we will be able to facilitate the finest possible medical care.”

In addition to the new VA Medical Center, there will be a women’s clinic. The project also includes parking structures, roadways, and sidewalks.

Construction is expected to take about four years. Construction is expected to be completed by early 2026.

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