Rally to Continue the Fight for Enhanced Services at the Montrose VA

The federal Enhanced Use Lease (EUL) plan that could have led to cut services and the lease of a large portion of the land to a private developer expired this March. This temporarily keeps the Montrose VA from being downsized, but if the EUL is reinstated the hospital could again be at risk of to which many in the community are opposed.

“Our veterans throughout the years have bravely defended us and now we must continue to defend them,” Cortlandt Town Supervisor Linda Puglisi said in March when the EUL ended.

This June 14 Puglisi, the Cortlandt Hudson Valley Veteran's Committee and other Montrose VA supporters will prove their dedication to keeping and enhancing services at the hospital when they rally on the Montrose campus.

The same groups have attended many public hearings, submitted petitions to the Veteran’s Affairs Department and have held rallies in protest to the EUL plan over the past two years, when it was still active. The EUL could have left 12 acres of the Montrose VA land to veterans while the rest, 160 acres, would have been leased to a private developer for housing not guaranteed only to veterans.

During Friday’s Memorial Day ceremony in Cortlandt, Puglisi, William Nazario, commander of Chapter 21 of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, chairman of the Hudson Valley Veteran's Committee and a Cortlandt resident, and others mentioned the continued dedication and fight for the Montrose VA. Nazario is a strong advocate for growing services and making the Montrose campus a hub for veterans suffering from physical and mental health problems.

To participate in the rally join the town officials and veterans groups at the Montrose VA at 3 p.m. on June 14.

To learn more about the past fightat the Montrose VA, click .