Published: 01-19-09
Sen. Hutchison Hails the Deal a “Win” for Marlin the State of Texas and the VA
WASHINGTON DC – U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R–TX) Texas’ senior Senator today participated in a ceremony to transfer the vacant Thomas T. Connally Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Marlin TX to the state of Texas’ Department of Criminal Justice. The land transfer will give the state of Texas ownership of the facility which will be renovated and used as a hospital for prisoners.
“Today we’ve had the privilege of transferring the deed from the Marlin VA Medical Center to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice” said Sen. Hutchison. “I’m proud to be a part of this ceremony and I appreciate the hard work of VA officials the state government and the Marlin community to help make this transfer possible.”
“This deal is truly a win for all involved parties. It will save the VA time and money by avoiding the long and costly facility disposal process. It will provide the Texas state government a new state-of-the-art hospital for its prisoners. It will benefit the people of Marlin who can expect better economic days to come” Sen. Hutchison said.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs transferred patients from the Marlin facility in 2003 and completely closed the facility in 2005.
In 2007 Sen. Hutchison secured a provision in an emergency supplemental bill which was signed into law turning the vacant VA hospital over to the state of Texas to be converted into a prison facility.
Sen. Hutchison’s provision relieved the VA of the costs to close down the vacant facility and allowed the state of Texas to take ownership of the property without paying for the land. The property has been appraised to be worth less than $500000 and with a two- to three-year disposal process the VA would have continued paying $265000 annually to maintain and secure the vacant building during the process.
“The transfer will allow the VA to direct taxpayer funding to where we need it most caring for our veterans who are returning home from the War on Terror” said Sen. Hutchison.
The state of Texas is currently working on a development plan for the complex which will require extensive renovations in order to be transformed into a medical facility for the Texas Department of Corrections. The complex consists of a six-story hospital and ten support buildings including a residence and a dormitory facility that was used by doctors. In addition there are two office buildings.
