NUECES COUNTY, Tx — Nueces County is one step closer to having a state veterans nursing home built in the Coastal Bend.
The Veterans Administration would cover 65 percent of the construction costs, and the Texas Veterans Land Board would cover 35 percent.
During a June 11 Nueces County Commissioners meeting, De La Cerda said he needed to submit letters of support from our local delegation to the land board.
On Thursday, De La Cerda told KRIS 6 News he's received 100% of those letters from our local elected officials, federal officials, our state representatives, and Congressman Michael Cloud.
"At this point, what we need to do and the commissioners court is going to do this here within a month or two is we're going to look at any properties that Nueces County has that is available to donate this land toward the state veterans nursing home," De La Cerda said.
Nueces County must find 25 acres of land, and the property must be within 25 miles of a V-A Clinic.
Once a location is chosen, it will be presented to the Veterans Land Board. If they approve, they will present the location to Veterans Affairs.
The deadline to apply to Veterans Affairs is April 2026.
If approved, it will take three years to build. The facility would have 120 beds and bring more than 200 jobs.
"It will be a $35-million facility. So, it's great for economic development in our area," De La Cerda said, "We want to put it where it's centralized and will provide services to our area as well."
The county is looking at several locations, including property by the Richard Borchard Fairgrounds in Robstown. There's also land near the Corpus Christi International Airport and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
"We've got to weigh in all of the options, all of the features that that land provides. So there are three sources that we can kind of look at, but you know our number one pick of course would be Robstown, because I mean that that would allow for other rural communities to touch," De La Cerda said.
Currently, 25,000 veterans live in the Coastal Bend, with thousands more living in surrounding counties.
The proposed state veterans home would be beneficial for veterans in the Coastal Bend, as the closest homes to the Coastal Bend are located in Floresville and McAllen.
You can watch the interview with Nueces County Veterans Services Officer J.J. De La Cerda on efforts to bring a state veterans cemetery to the Coastal Bend:
