New armory plan: clinic for veterans

In the five years the Fort Homer Hesterly Armory has been vacant, there have been many plans to redevelop the World War II-era landmark.

The latest: Convert the 75,000-square-foot Florida National Guard armory into a Veterans Administration clinic.

The VA has been looking at outpatient clinics in the community and at potential sites to relieve James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital, one of the nation's busiest, said U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor. The abundance of veterans in the area makes it "a logical and important location for a primary health clinic," Castor said of the 10 acres at 522 N. Howard Ave. in West Tampa.

"There's nothing concrete yet. We're still in the talking phase," said Col. Jesse Kinghorn, financial management director for the Florida Department of Military Affairs, St. Augustine, whose agency met last week with VA officials.

Haley spokeswoman Carolyn Clark said the next meeting between the military and the VA has not been scheduled.

Renovation would have to honor the armory's historic status. "You cannot change the structure of the outside," Kinghorn said.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for veterans to receive those medical services right in the heart of our community," reducing trips to Haley, near the University of South Florida, or Bay Pines Veterans' Hospital in Pinellas County, Castor said.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and Councilman Charlie Miranda have committed to assisting the project, which could require rezoning.

The National Guard used the armory until 2005, when most local operations shifted to Pinellas Park.

A committee of city and military officials and residents ranked a half-dozen responses to a 2006 request for armory proposals, selecting Heritage Square, a proposed $98 million project with a 300-room hotel, spa, restaurants, boutiques, park and cultural center. Negotiations reached an impasse, and early this year the National Guard began seeking other buyers.

Other finalists proposed apartments, restaurants, stores and amenities including an ice rink that would convert into an athletics playing surface or stage.

The armory, dedicated one day after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, achieved fame as an entertainment venue. Elvis Presley, Andy Griffith, The Animals, James Brown and The Doors performed there. President Kennedy addressed the Florida Chamber of Commerce there four days before his assassination. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. also spoke there.

Reporter George Wilkens can be reached at (813) 259-7124.