The writer, of Omaha, is director of the Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System for the Department of Veterans Affairs.
At any one time, there are an estimated 800 homeless veterans in Nebraska. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is building program capacity to better help those veterans, some of whom have suffered physical and mental injuries from roadside bombs, had several tours of combat and even were prisoners of war.
The VA Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System has partnered with the nonprofit organization Volunteers of America, Dakotas (VOA) to formulate a proposal for a Veterans Village at 39th and Pacific Streets in Omaha.
The proposal encompasses a four-story apartment building with the capacity to house 75 homeless veterans, a bottom floor reserved for VA and VOA employee offices and community space for the residents. Employees in these permanent offices would provide an array of services to the veterans, including vocational rehabilitation, counseling and life-skills training.
The combination of living space and on-site social services, known as supportive housing, has proven very effective in helping the homeless and those at risk of homelessness. Research studies show that supportive housing benefits not only the recipients but also the surrounding community.
The first and most obvious benefit of this proposal would be to the veterans housed in the Veterans Village. Self-sufficiency would be encouraged. Access to resources to help build new skills and create strong support networks would enable veterans to begin to integrate themselves back into the community.
Members of the surrounding community also would benefit from Veterans Village. The opportunity for neighbors to come together and welcome veterans into their neighborhoods and communities is invaluable in aiding veterans’ reintegration into society. It also enables us to thank veterans for their many services and sacrifices to our country.
This structure also would benefit the proposed neighborhood by enhancing and repurposing a plot of land that has been underutilized for years. The input of the City of Omaha and the community in regard to this proposal is important to the VA and VOA. Numerous meetings have already been held with both to disseminate information and obtain feedback from veterans, neighbors, community leaders and other citizens of Omaha.
Some alterations to early prototypes were made as a result of feedback, such as reducing the proposal for Veterans Village from 100 units to 75, and reducing the size of the building from five stories to four.
The concept of Veterans Village takes into consideration the city’s plan for midtown Omaha. The goal is to build a structure that isn’t distracting but, instead, is aesthetically pleasing and adds value to the area.
A well-planned and well-maintained facility would be an asset to the midtown community. These concessions and considerations attest to the ongoing cooperation of the VA and VOA with the City of Omaha and its communities to create a Veterans Village that we can all be proud of.
Veterans have served our country and sacrificed more than many of us can imagine. Many have been left vulnerable and in need of help from the combat experiences they have endured. Providing what help we can to these men and women is the least we can do as a community.
Support our homeless veterans and the national VA push to end homelessness by contacting your City Council members and encouraging them to endorse this proposal. Please consider attending the City Council meeting on Tuesday to show your support in person.
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