Emotions surrounding the historic pause of a new , Veterans Affairs , outpatient office in , Bakersfield , resurfaced last week as the , U. S. House of Representatives , passed regulations that, if signed into law, would convince the , Veterans Affairs Department , to deal with building by , September 2025.
Included in the , House Military Construction,  , Veterans Affairs, and Associated Agencies appropriations act, it is the most immediate action , Congress , has taken on the center and has near- overall power, provided there is no judge order barring construction.
” Bakersfield soldiers have waited much enough”, said Rep.  , David Valadao, R- Hanford, who sits on that committee. ” I’ll continue to do everything I can at the national stage to ensure that this project is finished without further delay.”
Since 2018, the town of , Bakersfield , has tried to pass plans for a fresh clinic — a solitary- story, 30, 100- square- foot building to get located at , 5512 Knudsen Drive , in northwest , Bakersfield. It would replace the existing facility at , 1801 Westwind Drive, which is 31 years old.
Construction on the new site has technically been permitted since November, when Progress for Bakersfield Veterans, a subsidiary of the , Beverly Hills Realtor Cardinal Equities Group, unanimously rejected appeals to biological surveys that the city had previously argued were “insufficient” by the city’s current clinic’s owner, as a result of the city’s unanimous refusal to grant a court injunction.
But a tour of the site reveals no new developments. According to , KGET- TV , 17, the developer,  , SASD Development Group, has paused construction until it can obtain title insurance on the property.
Neither SASD Development Group Managing Partner , Steve Doctor, nor the , San Diego- based developer’s lead attorney on the matter,  , Alan Fenstermacher, responded to several requests for comment on Thursday and Friday.
On Wednesday, Doctor did clarify to a reporter with KGET that pending lawsuits prevent them from obtaining the insurance that they need to obtain to pay building costs.
Doctor told KGET in an email that the lawsuit prevents the title company from issuing a title policy, which is a requirement for any lender. Therefore, the developer is unable to obtain financing to build without title insurance from the lender. The Cohen group is aware of this and continues to fight our legal interests.
Valadao and others have accused Progress for Bakersfield Veterans of carrying out a frivolous, years-long campaign of appeals, complaints, and challenges with the aim of putting off construction as long as possible.
According to Valadao,” The Bakersfield VA clinic has been delayed for over a decade because of one person’s frivolous lawsuits that have prioritized profits over veterans ‘ care.”
Through various legal teams, PBV has submitted 15 procurement protests against the project and the VA’s award of the lease, nine bid protests to the , U. S.  , Government Accountability Office, three protests to the , U. S. Court of Federal Claims , and two appeals to the , U. S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. PBV, according to public documents, has also filed a challenge to SASD’s small- business eligibility with the , U. S. Small Business Administration.
Their grip over the site has outlived the tenure of former Rep.  , Kevin McCarthy, R- Bakersfield, persisted against the best efforts by city and county officials, and remained unflinching in the face of countless testimonies by military veterans living in , Kern County.
Currently PBV has lawsuits pending alleging state and federal environmental violations that the new site would negatively impact the surrounding ecosystem, to include most notably the , Bakersfield , kit fox. According to , Bakersfield , Deputy City Attorney , Viridiana Gallardo- King, the state lawsuit, which alleges violations under the California Environmental Quality Act, alone could take up to three years to resolve.
Signed by then- Gov.  , Ronald Reagan , in 1970, the statute known as CEQA has become recognized as a legal tool for delaying or stopping public works projects, from the massive to the micro — from bridges to bike lanes.
The Realtor’s legal team,  , Channel Law Group, did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Due to timetables in its expired lease agreement, the , VA , currently pays PBV about$ 415, 000 per month to lease the clinic, with 10 % increases “every six- month anniversary” on top of regular market adjustments, according to , VA , spokesman , Damian McGee.
This is a far cry from the$ 223, 000 the , VA , will pay monthly for the new site, which will provide audiology, mental health, telehealth, ambulatory care, an eye clinic, physical and occupational therapy, prosthetics, dental services, a lab and a pharmacy, among other services.
Many veterans, due to the limited capacity at the current site, commute by bus to , Los Angeles , for treatment. Some do n’t take any care for weeks or months.
In the coming weeks, representatives with Valadao’s office will meet with , VA , department heads and members of , SASD Development Group , to discuss a strategy moving forward.
Meanwhile, in the absence of construction, a new population has reclaimed the , Knudsen Drive , site. And it’s not kit foxes.
” The city has had to send people out there to clear encampments”, said , Sandi Jantz, a nearby resident.
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( c ) 2024 The Bakersfield Californian
Distributed by , Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
