Westchester County has opened a new County Veterans Service Agency (VSA) facility at 10 County Center Road, near the Westchester County Center in White Plains. The newly renovated space, on the second floor of a building that houses other county offices, was designed to be accessible and welcoming to veterans and their families.
At a Feb. 15 dedication ceremony for the new facility, Westchester County Executive George Latimer recalled what it was like in the agency”™s former space at 112 E. Post Road in White Plains.
“We knew it was not sufficient. It cramped people. You had to pay to park there,” Latimer said. “It was on an upper floor, so for veterans to come in didn”™t necessarily feel comfortable going into that kind of a governmental bureaucracy. So, we knew we needed better space for them. We made a temporary move down to New Rochelle where we had some temporary space.”
The new facility includes an elevator large enough to easily accommodate the wheelchairs that veterans sometimes need to use.
“The Westchester heroes who will be served by this new central office location deserve the best we can offer for them,” Latimer said. “A new facility, coupled with the VSA”™s hardworking staff, allows us to better provide for and take care of our county”™s veterans.”
Latimer emphasized that the new facility offers ample free parking and its location close to the Westchester County Center makes having events for veterans at the County Center extremely convenient.
VSA Director Ron Tocci said, Â ”This office is centrally located in the county and will take care of thousands of veterans in need and their dependents. It”™s a reminder of our obligation to take care of those who take care of us.”
There are approximately 50,000 veterans in Westchester County who served their country in wars and what were described as conficts as well as those who served their country during peacetime.
As advocates for veterans and their families, Westchester County counselors work closely with the U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs and other federal, state, local, and private agencies to help the veterans. Services include free accredited representation, securing military and personal records, obtaining medals and awards, assistance with real property tax exemption filing and helping with medical ID card enrollment.
Tocci said that each year the VSA brings to Westchester veterans $85 million in funding from the federal and state governments. He said those funds are dedicated to providing for their needs while reflecting benefits to which they”™re entitled.
U.S. Rep. Mondaire Jones was among those attending the event and said, “This office will be critical in advocating on behalf of our veterans and working with the VA to provide the care and support that our veterans deserve after returning home.”
