Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp approved the $1 million budget item which the General Assembly voted for earlier this year that clears the final state hurdle in moving forward to build a veterans memorial cemetery on property adjacent to the East Georgia Central Hospital, commonly known as Gracewood.
Former Augusta Mayor Bob Young, co-chair of the project, is ecstatic at the news. Young first began pushing for a veterans’ cemetery in Augusta 20 years ago. His plans were shelved in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and no sooner than Young got the momentum to move forward once again, the plans were stymied by the COVID-19 pandemic.
MORE: Georgia Veterans Memorial Cemetery Coming To Augusta
Young praised the local legislative delegation for their tenacity in pushing the seed money through, which finally passed on the last day of the session.
“They worked around the clock behind the scenes to get the seed money and now it is no longer a question of if, but when,” Young said.
According to Young, the Veteran’s Administration must have a commitment from the state for 10% of the total cost of the project, which is estimated at $10 million, before the application process can even begin.
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Now, having that check in hand from the governor, Young said that he and co-chair Don Clark held a conference call with representatives of the Department of Behavioral Health to begin the next step, which is to mark the area on the over 500-acre site and draw the boundaries which will be presented to the Veteran’s Administration.
“The boundaries are important so that we can make it clear that the cemetery will not in any way infringe on the Gracewood property or hinder operations at the hospital,” Young said.
The deadline for the pre-application is July 1. After that is submitted, the Department of Behavioral Health, which currently owns the property, can begin their own process to deed the land over to the VA.
Currently, more than 48,000 veterans reside in southeastern Georgia. The cemetery would serve those veterans from Richmond and Columbia counties and all the way to Taliaferro and Washington counties.
“Right now, families have to travel to Milledgeville or Columbia to visit their loved one’s grave,” said Georgia Rep. Gloria Frazier (D), who is also a military spouse. “We want to bring them back home.”
Bob Mauldin of 2KM Architects, located in Augusta, has been tapped to design the cemetery. He said he plans to model the Augusta cemetery on the one at Milledgeville, which he also designed.
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Veterans who received honorable discharges, as well as their spouses and dependents, all qualify for burial at veterans memorial cemeteries throughout the nation. Burial at state and national veterans cemeteries are free to the families.
“Once the cemetery is complete, it will be able to accommodate more veterans annually than the Glenville and Milledgeville cemeteries combined,” Young said. “The Augusta cemetery will have enough space to not only provide burials for decades, but for generations.”
MORE: State Veterans Cemetery Picking up Steam
Now that the pre-application process has begun, the cemetery should be complete and accepting burials within three to five years.
Young said that he and Clark are planning a public event to happen next week to celebrate the milestone and provide the public with more information on the project.
Scott Hudson is the Managing Editor of The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com.
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