Area-specific site sought for new veterans clinic

Green Bay facility to expand services

By Tony Walter • [email protected]

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for a Brown County location for the new Milo C. Huempfner Community Based Outpatient Clinic, indicating that it must be north of Wisconsin 29 and within a few miles of U.S. 41.

The government wants to have site proposals by July 17.

The VA plans to select a developer who will have the center built, then lease it to the U.S. government, keeping the land on the tax rolls.

U.S. Rep. Steve Kagen, D-Appleton, said the arrangement would generate between $2 million and $3 million in property tax revenue annually for the county.

"It’ll have a huge footprint in the county," said Kagen, adding that he expects construction on the new center to start this year.

It’s not known if the new clinic will replace the current veterans clinic on Siegler Street near St. Mary’s Hospital Medical Center in Green Bay. Some veterans still will have to go to Milwaukee for specialty care, Kagen said, but the new facility will expand services in Northeastern Wisconsin.

The proposed cost of the new center has not been disclosed, and VA officials have not indicated why the center must be north of Wisconsin 29 and within 2.5 miles of U.S. 41.

The VA posted its plans on its Web site, indicating it wants to purchase or lease 20 to 25 acres for a 161,525-square-foot, two-story building with a parking lot that can accommodate 1,200 vehicles. The site must be entirely within Brown County.

Brown County Executive Tom Hinz said earlier this year that the mental health center could be considered for the veterans clinic since a new center is under construction. But the mental hospital is more than 2.5 miles from U.S. 41.