Holyoke's New Veterans Home Opens With 234 Beds, Six Years After at Least 76 Residents Died. Some Families Say They Were Invited Late

Massachusetts opened a new Veterans Home at Holyoke on Thursday, replacing the former Soldiers' Home where at least 76 veterans died during a COVID-19 outbreak in the spring of 2020, one of the deadliest at a long-term care facility in the country.

According to the governor's office announcement, the new 350,000-square-foot building replaces the original long-term care facility, which opened in 1952, and expands capacity from 128 beds to 234. It has 212 private rooms with individual bathrooms and 11 double rooms. WGGB, as published by Turn to 10, reported the cost at more than $465 million; NBC10 Boston described it as more than $400 million.

The building is organized around the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' "small-house" model, the announcement says, with living spaces grouped into smaller home-like communities with shared dining and gathering areas. It includes upgraded clinical and rehabilitation space, a dental suite, outdoor gardens and a dedicated 30-bed memory care unit. It is heated and cooled with a geothermal system. A second phase will add a 40-person adult day health program for veterans living in the surrounding area, with full completion expected in summer 2028.

A memorial garden at the campus entrance will honor veterans who died at the home, especially those lost during the pandemic. Turn to 10 reported that the garden is expected to be finished by summer 2028.

Residents and staff will move in phases, the state said, and NBC10 reported that there is a waiting list and that the home expects to be full and fully staffed sometime next year.

"We can never undo the tragedy that happened at Holyoke, but we can honor those we lost by making sure nothing like it happens again," Gov. Maura Healey said in the announcement. At the ceremony, she said, "As I look out at family members who lost loved ones here during the COVID pandemic, I know this is a very bittersweet location," NBC10 reported.

U.S. Rep. Richard Neal recalled gathering outside the home six years ago "after seventy-six veterans tragically lost their lives" and credited former VA Secretary Denis McDonough with moving the project up the federal funding list. U.S. Sen. Edward Markey noted the building was made possible by "federal and state investment." Veterans Services Secretary Eric Goralnick said, "Today, we do more than open a building—we keep a promise."

Not every family felt included. Debbie Moulton, whose father died at the home, told NBC10 she almost did not come and was upset she was not invited until this week. "A little bit," she said. "But hey, it's politics. What can I say." Goralnick told NBC10: "Ultimately, that's my responsibility, and apologize to those families. The focus is on moving forward."

The legal aftermath of the outbreak still weighs on some families. NBC10 reported that many were frustrated that the home's former leaders Bennett Walsh and David Clinton will only have to follow court-set conditions for three months and serve no jail time after changing their pleas to an admission of sufficient facts in the criminal neglect case. The state settled a class-action lawsuit over the deaths for about $58 million, approved by a federal judge in 2022, Turn to 10 reported.

The administration's announcement says that since Healey took office, the state has strengthened leadership and oversight at the home, modernized medical records, increased staffing and stopped using temporary agency staff. It reports that registered nurse and certified nursing assistant staffing levels are now twice national averages and that hospitalization and outpatient emergency room visit rates are about 46% below national averages. Both state veterans homes, in Holyoke and Chelsea, have full state and federal licensure and certification, the state says. Those figures are the administration's own.

The building was built under a project labor agreement with building trades unions, and the state says construction ran ahead of schedule. Residents at the ceremony welcomed it. "Couldn't be in any better place than this," Frank Horn, who served in the 1960s, told NBC10. Resident John Hoar told WGGB the staff and builders had given "true meaning to the phrase thank you for your service."

Still unknown: the final cost once the second phase is finished, how long the waiting list is, and when the home will reach full occupancy.