There are plans to build a new nursing home for veterans in Orangeburg County which will cost $87.3 million.
The Orangeburg nursing home would house 200 to 220 beds in both private and semi-private rooms. The facility would be located on U.S. 301, off of exit 154 on Interstate 26.
Veterans who reach retirement age within the next two decades are expected to benefit from the new State Veterans Nursing Home.
As part of the VA State Home Construction Grant Program, the federal and state governments would fund the home.
SCDMH recommended building a new veterans home in the county.
The recommendation stemmed from the state’s Joint Bond Review Committee’s request that the department determine the needs and feasibility of additional state veteran homes.
JBRC is a 10-member body overseeing state capital improvement projects. Late last year, the JBRC approved the SCDMH’s recommendation.
SC State Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter, who serves on the JBRC, says she has been advocating for a veterans’ nursing home in Orangeburg County for some time.
“A few years ago, the late Howard Metcalf, former state director for Veteran Affairs, suggested to me that Orangeburg County would be an excellent site for a nursing home,” Cobb-Hunter said. “I agreed and began working then on securing approval of a facility for the county.”
