GOSHEN -- The long-planned outpatient clinic for military veterans in Elkhart County will open in October on Goshen's south side, federal officials announced Wednesday.

Ambulatory Care Solutions, which runs the veterans clinic in South Bend, will operate the Goshen clinic in a building that once housed a discount store at 2014 Lincolnway East.

In jointly announcing the clinic's operator, location and Oct. 1 opening date, U.S. Reps. Mark Souder and Joe Donnelly revealed the final details that Veterans Affairs officials had been fine-tuning for months.

The clinic itself has been years in the making.

"We are about to realize our long-fought goal of opening a new veterans' outpatient clinic in Goshen," said Souder, R-Fort Wayne, who represents the area.

Donnelly, D-Granger, serves on the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

"In my very first meeting with the VA, I highlighted the importance of this clinic, and I have consistently advocated for it since that time," said Donnelly, who picked up the work of former Congressman Chris Chocola.

The clinic will serve veterans from Elkhart, Kosciusko, LaGrange and Noble counties.

Those veterans mostly travel to the South Bend clinic or the VA hospital in Fort Wayne for health services, and they will have the option of continuing to seek care in those cities.

The Goshen clinic will provide outpatient medical and mental health services for veterans enrolled in the VA health care system.

Gary Whitehead, Elkhart County's veterans service officer, said mental health services are becoming increasingly important for the growing number of veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

"Really, it's a dream come true," he said of the clinic. "It's been a long fight, but it's a done deal. I wish a lot of my older veterans who have passed would have seen what the VA is doing for us."