ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- Gov. Charlie Crist, along with Florida Department of Veterans Affairs Executive Director LeRoy Collins Jr., a retired U.S. Navy Reserve rear admiral, praised on Thursday more than $22 million in federal funding for construction of a seventh Florida veterans’ long-term care facility in St. Augustine and capital improvements to the veterans’ assisted living facility in Lake City.

Nevin M. Weaver, director of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Sunshine Healthcare Network, presented checks to Crist and Admiral at a ceremony in St. Augustine at the site of the future Clyde E. Lassen State Veterans’ Nursing Home.

"Just as Florida is at the forefront in honoring and caring for veterans, we are also a leader in increasing energy efficiency, and I am especially proud that this new construction project will be a ‘green' building,” Crist said. “We look forward to construction beginning within the next month, and providing jobs for this community throughout the construction phase and once the doors are open.”

The new 120-bed Clyde E. Lassen State Veterans’ Nursing Home will be a pioneer as the first known "green" nursing home in the state. Under Crist’s leadership, Florida’s energy policy requires all new buildings constructed by the state to use a high-performance green building rating system in order to increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gases.

As a result, the nursing home will be built using nationally accepted benchmarks from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. In addition to environmentally friendly landscaping, the home will incorporate recycled materials in its initial construction and be designed with fixtures to reduce annual water consumption by 30 percent and reduce total energy consumption by 14 percent from conventionally built facilities. It will also maximize outdoor views and natural lighting.

The new nursing home is named after the late Cmdr. Clyde E. Lassen, who received the Medal of Honor for his heroic action in Vietnam. Lassen entered the U.S. Navy from Jacksonville, where members of his family still live.

In addition to the $20.3 million in federal funding, $10 million in state funds has been appropriated for construction costs.

Construction is scheduled to begin next month, and the nursing home is scheduled to open its doors to residents in early 2010. Once fully operational, it is expected to generate about $6.8 million annually in salary and benefits, about $400,000 in other staff services, and about $1.3 million in expenses and contracted services.