After five years of construction the Veterans Affairs department took charge of a new $205 million hospital in San Diego this month, a VA San Diego Healthcare System spokesperson said Monday.
The almost 200,000-square-foot facility is next to the main hospital at the Jennifer Moreno VA Medical Center.
The contract to build the new hospital was awarded in 2021. Construction was overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).
A March 2023 press release by the USACE said the facility was projected to open in the fall of 2024.
In August 2025, the USACE said it would open "later" that year.
San Diego VA Healthcare System spokesperson David Haas said the goal now is to open the center to patients early in 2027. He said the delays were due to "infrastructure and technical issues."
"To ensure the facility met operational and safety requirements, VA needed to address infrastructure and technical issues that were identified during the construction and inspection processes," Haas said.
Injured veterans advocated for the new center for years.
Louis Irvin is the executive director of the San Diego chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA). He said they recognized the need for a new center about 16 years ago.
Veterans with spinal cord injuries need specialized care, he said.
"There's a massive need for long-term care for spinal cord injuries," he said.
That's what the new center offers — 50 patient beds. Twenty of them are for long-term care, Irvin said.
The existing spinal cord center is one of 25 run by the VA around the country. It serves about 850 veterans in Southern California, Arizona and Nevada, Irvin said.
Richard Johnson has used a wheelchair for 60 years. He cofounded the San Diego chapter of PVA and served as president of the national organization.
He was part of the original advocacy group more than 40 years ago that worked to get the current center built in San Diego. He said nothing can replace the VA when it comes to treating veterans' injuries.
"The keyword that I want to use is 'continuity,'" Johnson said. "Continuity of care, which I've had since 1965. There’s no place else I can go and show up and they know me and they know about me. It's critical — it's life saving."
The new hospital features several improvements the PVA says are important for the health and quality of life for paralyzed veterans.
The 50 patient beds are all in private rooms. The 20 long-term care beds are arranged in what the PVA calls a "homelike environment" that provides both privacy and opportunities for social interaction.
It also has outdoor recreation facilities that Jesse Robinson, the president of the San Diego PVA, said is "desperately needed."
That's because the existing center's outdoor area was closed for construction.
"There's not a lot of places for veterans (with) spinal cord injuries to go to get outside and congregate and speak to one another," Robinson said. "That's been very difficult."
A lot of the PVA's work involved helping veterans whose injuries are more recent and are learning and adapting to a whole new way of life.
"All of us are sitting here, you know, to help the people that come behind us," Robinson said. "We've already been through this, but we're here to promote and encourage and shift and change and educate and advocate for the guy that shows up tomorrow."
Irvin agreed.
"It's all about community and purpose, right?" Irvin said. "We provide the community and then help them find their purpose."
Irvin said the PVA is helping the VA on final design elements. This includes installing equipment and furnishings.
The building was accepted from the builder by the government July 14, Haas said.
