News Now Warsaw needs to correct a story we ran last week about plans for a veterans clinic that would be part of a new medical hub in Warsaw.

Innovcare, a real estate company specializing in healthcare projects, issued a news release last week suggesting the clinic would occupy one of four buildings that is part of the hub.

Construction of the medical hub that "will bring numerous health services for residents and veterans of Warsaw is set to begin in late August 2024 with expected completion in the third quarter of 2025," the news release said.

The news release said a 17,200 square-foot building for the veterans clinic has been set aside and included quotes from two elected officials celebrating the notion of having a clinic for veterans in Warsaw.

However, further down, the news release said the inclusion of the clinic as part of the hub is still only a proposal.

A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs contacted News Now Warsaw to point out that more than one firm is bidding on a location for the clinic and that no decision has been made.

Asked when a decision is expected and whether that might be a matter of months or years, the spokesman described it as being somewhere in between.

News Now Warsaw regrets the error and apologizes for its failure to fully vet the news release and for any inconvenience the original story created.

You can read the entire story originally taken from the Times-Union below:

Innovcare, a healthcare real estate firm based in Indiana (www.thinkinnovcare.com), completed the successful negotiations of the purchase of approximately 16 acres along U.S. 30 and East CR 200N on behalf of Parkview Health to build the city of Warsaw’s new “medical hub.”
The construction of this medical hub that will bring numerous health services for residents and veterans of Warsaw is set to begin in late August 2024 with expected completion in the third quarter of 2025, according to a news release from Innovcare.
The 16 acres that will become the new Medical Hub of Warsaw were comprised of Martha Robinson’s family estate. Most of the property was owned by the Robinson family who have held the land for decades. Martha Robinson, 101, and the Robinson family agreed to the sale of the property given the unique and long-term goals of the area for a designated medical hub.
Parkview and Innovcare are working on a planned master development to include three medical office buildings and one ambulatory surgery center as phase one of a three-phase medical hub plan.
The medical hub is a planned HUB located northeast of U.S. 30 and South of East CR 200N, adjacent to Robinson Construction. It’s an overlay area designated as a planned hub for medical services and medical manufacturing. The total HUB is approximately 80 acres.
The medical hub vision has been spearheaded by state Rep. Craig Snow and his vision for economic growth in Warsaw, the release states. Snow has been working with OrthoWorx and the state of Indiana to secure funds for Warsaw’s ever-evolving manufacturing base.
Phase 1 job creation is expected to generate 130-150 high-paying jobs for the community of Warsaw.
“We are excited for the first phase of the Warsaw Medical Hub; this project is a great example of continued demand for growth and job creation in Warsaw around our uniquely specialized labor force. We are eager to see this medical hub grow over the next few years with a projected financial impact of $120 million in new development, real estate taxes and infrastructure improvements,” stated Snow.
Snow, along with a constituency including Warsaw Mayor Jeff Grose, the city of Warsaw and Local Legion Post 49 members, has been a strong advocate to complete phase 1 of the medical hub and has supported Innovcare’s plans to master develop over $60 million in planned improvements, including a four-building medical park, the release states.
“The Medical Hub is another exciting project for the residents of Warsaw and the addition of the VA clinic will ensure our veterans are given the best available treatment.,” Grose said.
The project groundbreaking for the medical hub will be in late August. The project will pay property real estate taxes and will contribute to the tax increment for the medical hub. The project completion date is expected to be third quarter of 2025.
Parkview Health and Innovcare have secured financing and approvals for a 16,500-square-foot primary care medical building occupied by Parkview Physician Group, a 9,000-square-foot medical building for orthopedic care occupied by ONE, a 14,750-square-foot surgery center occupied by a ONE and Parkview Health Joint venture.
“We’ve been continually asked to offer more services here so patients can access Parkview’s high-quality care closer to home. We look forward to showcasing the level of care we can provide for the community of Warsaw with the addition of this new medical hub. We are grateful to the greater Warsaw community for embracing Parkview and allowing us to care for your health and well-being,” said Scott Gabriel, market president, Parkview Health Northwest.
A 17,200-square-foot medical office building for Warsaw Veterans Affairs is also proposed in phase 1 of the medical hub. Three out of the four buildings have been released for construction. Innovcare VA., majority-owned by Andrew Stevenson, (www.thinkinnovcareva.com) a company associated with the owner of Innovcare, is proposing to the federal government, as a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), to secure this site as a Veterans Affairs medical destination. Veterans Affairs has reissued their proposal (RLP #36C25024R0068) originally sent on Oct. 20, 2023. Innovcare VA has proposed the medical hub planned area and site. The proposal was due on July 23, 2024. Innovcare VA expects an award to be issued by the fourth quarter of 2024.
The project has been supported by many people, the release states, including Grose, the city of Warsaw, Snow and Kosciusko County Councilman Tony Ciriello.
“As an elected official in Kosciusko County and the son and brother of military veterans, I fully support the establishment of the VA clinic in Warsaw. Our veterans are often overlooked for their most basic health care needs and the addition of the VA clinic will certainly provide those needs. Our country has remained a free and opportunistic country thanks to the many men and women who have served our great nation to preserve those very freedoms,” Ciriello said.
The project will impact CR 200 and frontage along U.S. 30. The project has taken into account the goals of the U.S. 30 expansion, Indiana Department of Transportation right-of-way and the recommendations from the U.S. 30 Coalition. County Road 200 will be expanded and be improved. Innovcare has worked with the city and state to master plan the site.
“Our commitment to bring $60 million to Warsaw through the master development Phase 1 medical hub has only been achievable by the steadfast public-private partnership being able to make decisions timely and control and reduce cost during an inflationary time. This project is exciting for our company as a privately held small business but also an awesome opportunity to show how private and nonprofits can work together to achieve long term economic impacts. We are excited to deliver this project to Warsaw with the support of the city of Warsaw and Parkview Health. We are grateful to be involved in such an exciting time for Warsaw,” said Tyson Chastain, founder, Innovcare.
The development project team members include Parkview Health, Innovcare, Innovcare VA, Robinson Construction, Weigand Construction, MKM Architects, Design Collaborative, Engineering Resources and G&G Hauling and Excavating.

The post Veterans Affairs says no final decsion yet on veterans clinic location appeared first on News Now Warsaw.

WARSAW — The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has confirmed that Warsaw is being strongly considered for a new Community-Based Outpatient Clinic that would serve north central Indiana.

A spokesperson for the VA responded to a series of questions from News Now Warsaw Tuesday after the subject came up Monday night at a zoning meeting involving Parkview Health’s plan to construct an office complex and a 14,000 square foot surgical center on CR 200N in Warsaw.

At Monday's zoning meeting, Michael Hoffman, an attorney representing Parkview, briefly referenced that the VA was considering a clinic that would be part of the overall construction plan.

Parkview’s zoning request was approved and construction on the surgical center is expected to begin within months, but plans for a VA clinic — if ever approved — are likely years away.

Alex Sharpe, Public Affairs Officer for the VA Northern Indiana Health Care System in Fort Wayne confirmed the VA’s interest, but stressed that nothing has been decided.

The VA responded to a series of questions Tuesday, but very few details were made available. 

They did provide some insights, though.

As part of the VA’s Northern Indiana Health Care System's efforts to provide care closer to Veterans,“we have identified adding a clinic in the Warsaw area will help to fill a geographical void between the Jackie Walorski Clinic in Mishawaka, the Hoosier Clinic in Peru and our two main campuses in Marion and Fort Wayne.”

The VA also added that they are currently “in the pre-solicitation phase for a 15,000 square foot lease for a Community-Based Outpatient Clinic in or around Warsaw, Indiana, in alignment with the VA’s intent of providing care closer to our Veterans.”

Kosciusko County’s veteran’s service officer, Darryl McDowell, said Tuesday he had heard the talk of plans by the VA to consider Warsaw. He stressed that the VA’s interest is still far from being finalized and would likely be years away from becoming a reality because of the lengthy approval process.

Nonetheless, he's enthused about the opportunities such a move would provide for local veterans.

"I look at it as a very positive (thing)," McDowell said. "Right now, transportation is a big challenge for getting veterans to appointments that are VA related."

Part of the problem is that transportations services for veterans are often limited to appointments within the county, McDowell said.

He said Kosciusko County ranks 24th among Indiana's 92 counties with the number of veterans identified as residents.

News Now Warsaw was told by a business entity early this year that the VA had been looking at two other sites in Warsaw, but the government agency did not respond to questions at the time.

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