People have lined up to get into the place for 111 years--ever since that gray winter day in 1889 when its first residents arrived after marching, military-style, 300 miles to get there.
But old soldiers aren't the only ones these days who covet a spot at the 430-acre federal veterans center in West Los Angeles.
Movie makers, ad executives, athletic coaches, homeless advocates, medical researchers, theater producers, apartment operators, hotel owners, bus drivers, restaurant managers, educators and museum officials are among those jockeying to keep or get pieces of the sprawling, largely undeveloped VA Medical Center grounds that span Wilshire Boulevard.
That clamor angers descendants of the two pioneer families that donated the property and has veterans groups up in arms.
In response, officials of the Department of Veterans Affairs now promise to never again sell off chunks of medical center land. They also vow that future leases of the property to outsiders will be done with care--and with the concurrence of veterans and community members.
Bounded by high-rise offices and nearby million-dollar estates in Brentwood and Westwood, what started as a modest home for old soldiers on the rural outskirts of Los Angeles has become what some consider the most valuable property in the United States.
The newly appointed head of the West Los Angeles VA center is acknowledging that mistakes have been made in the use of the land.
"In the past, the VA has not done everything it could to be viewed as a member of the community," said Philip P. Thomas, chief executive officer of the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System for the past seven months.
Thomas, a 49-year-old former Army major who served in the Persian Gulf War, said the VA will develop a master plan for the site that will map out renovation goals and such projects as a proposed Alzheimer's treatment unit for veterans.
Planned improvements include turning land beneath 14 old trailer buildings into green space and a $3-million renovation of the landmark Victorian-style chapel.
"We are not going to be divvying up the land. It will remain intact. I'm making a commitment that we're not going to subdivide our property. That happened in the past. We're going to retain ownership," he said. "We may change the green space, but we never will destroy it."
That has not always been the case. For decades, developers have nibbled at the property.
