Maricopa County Breaks Ground for New Veterans' Community

Ground was broken over the weekend for the Veterans Community Project in Glendale, an ambitious development that will create a housing community for homeless veterans.

As 12 News described, the community will provide 50 fully furnished homes for veterans across eight acres. It will also provide additional services, including health and wellness, education, employment, and financial literacy, all personalized for the residents.

"And what better use of government money than that?" said Maricopa County Supervisor and former Congresswoman Debbie Lesko (R-AZ), who attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

"My dad was a veteran, he served in World War II, and he often did not talk about it," Lesko said in additional comments, "It was very difficult for him, and so I cannot imagine what these veterans have seen and gone through. And unfortunately, it is so sad that so many of them are homeless. We need to help our homeless veterans, and that is what we are doing here today."

Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), another ceremony attendant, also said, "There needs to be more. I work a lot making sure that the vouchers [that] veterans get are accessible, but we still need to make sure the veterans actually use them."

Additionally, he continued, "A lot of times, we can get them into housing, but they are not necessarily getting all the help we need. So that is what we have got to work on, making sure we get them all of the help they can."

Housing for homeless veterans was an issue Sen. Gallego hoped to work with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins during the latter's confirmation hearing.

The Arizona Senator asked Collins what his plan was for the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) program, which Collins said was "very important because we look at the areas for disability, we look at the VASH, we ask if this is actually enough to provide people the resources to have a home."