Collier County has secured the top spot on the VA State Home Construction Grants Property List FY 2025 for new facilities, bringing a long-anticipated project closer to reality. The VA planned to build a $72 million, 120-bed skilled nursing and adult day care facility for veterans, partially funded by the $40 million of Collier County funds.
The two-story facility will feature a modern design aimed at improving staffing efficiency and delivering a wide range of services, including therapy and day health care, all housed on the second floor. The center will also include inviting amenities such as gardens, gazebos, walkways, libraries, and other communal spaces designed to enhance residents’ quality of life.
This marks Collier’s second time reaching the top of the State’s priority list. In 2014, the county was passed over in favor of St. Lucie County, which went on to open the $62 million Ardie R. Copas State Veterans’ Nursing Home in 2022. Currently, Florida operates nine State veterans’ homes, though eight are not at full capacity due to staffing challenges.
In 2019, Collier County purchased the 167-acre Golden Gate Golf Course for $29.1 million with the dual goal of preventing overdevelopment and creating a location for the veteran’s facility. The county is responsible for 35% of construction costs, while the federal VA will cover the remaining 65%. State VA officials visited the site in 2021 and later recommended it to Governor Ron DeSantis and the State Cabinet as Florida’s next veterans home site.
To support the project, Collier County transferred $30 million last year from its voter-approved 1-cent sales surtax (passed in 2018) to the State’s VA escrow account. An additional $10 million is being held locally for the facility. This marks the first time a project has covered the State’s required 35% share of construction costs using local funds.
Collier County had more than 21,800 veterans aged 65 and older in 2019, and that number is now estimated to exceed 31,000—including a growing population of younger veterans. Florida is home to nearly 1.5 million veterans, third in the nation behind California and Texas, and Collier’s 2014 needs-based assessment indicated the new home would serve veterans in eight surrounding counties within a 75-mile radius, totaling over 200,000 veterans. Construction is expected to begin in 2026, with the home projected to open by 2029.