A rendering of a proposed medical facility on the ‘triangle lot’ in Brick Township. (Photo: Daniel Nee)
As efforts to replace the James J. Howard Outpatient VA Clinic in Brick, long plagued by overcrowding a lack of certain services, seems to have stalled in Washington, local residents have organized a petition that is aimed at helping the clinic become a reality.
Last year, Brick Township’s planning board approved a 75,000 square foot medical building in the “triangle lot” located where Route 88, Burrsville Road and Jack Martin Boulevard meet. Though it was not openly disclosed that this would be a VA’s new clinic, the specifications were virtually perfectly aligned with those the government had requested, and the site had been put forth publicly as a candidate for a new clinic. Toms River officials, meanwhile, want the clinic to be located near the Seacourt shopping center.
In May, however, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Construction and Facilities Management announced that it had canceled the ongoing procurement processes and leasing search for the new facility. This led U.S. Rep. Andy Kim to pen a letter asking for more details and ramping up a grassroots campaign to replace the aging facility.
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With the assistance of the “Go To Bat for Vets” campaign, an online petition is seeking 1,000 signatures to support the constuction of the new clinic in Brick. The link to the petition can be found here.
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