WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has awarded a grant of $2.2 million to the state of Alaska to convert the Palmer Pioneer House into the state's first veterans home.
"This grant honors our commitment to care for the men and women of Alaska who have served in uniform," said the Honorable R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. "Our federal-state partnership helps to provide comfortable housing for some Alaska veterans."
The $2.2 million grant will pay up to 65 percent of the cost of converting the existing facilities at Palmer into a veterans home. Overall cost of the project is estimated at $3.5 million.
In fiscal year 2004, VA spent more than $220 million in Alaska to serve about 65,000 veterans who live in the state. VA operates a major medical center in Anchorage, with clinics in Kenai and Fairbanks, and VetCenters in several locations.
