GULFPORT -- When the area's congressional delegation and other government officials stick shovels into the dirt Monday, they'll be launching a new era in housing for military retirees.
The much-anticipated groundbreaking on a new Armed Forces Retirement Home in Gulfport is set for 10 a.m. Monday, the U.S. General Services Administration announced.
The government awarded a $189 million contract to build the retirement home to Yates Construction in September. The home will replace the old 11-story building that was imploded last year on the beachfront property.
The main building at the 44-acre complex will be more than 650,000 square feet and will provide independent living, assisted living and long-term care. The building will be large enough to hold up to 584 residents. The project includes parking, landscaping, walking paths and recreation areas.
A few days after Hurricane Katrina pummeled the beachfront campus in Gulfport, nearly 400 veterans evacuated and headed for the government's only other retirement home, just four miles from the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
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Posted on Thursday, February 28, 2008
by Sun Herald