Veterans slam Trump administration for scrapping Alameda Point VA clinic plans

ALAMEDA, Calf. (KGO) -- Veterans and local leaders are speaking out after the Trump administration quietly killed a multi-million-dollar plan to transform the former Alameda Naval Air Station into a VA healthcare facility and columbarium.

The federal government had invested roughly $400 million over the past decade to redevelop the site into an outpatient clinic and burial grounds for veterans. But in August, the administration abruptly declared the project dead - without offering much explanation.

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For 96-year-old Air Force veteran Sam Moriana, the news was heartbreaking.

"I was hoping to celebrate my 100th birthday here. Then when I reached my demise, I was hoping to be buried here in Alameda," Moriana said.

Moriana and other veterans, including Vietnam veteran Steve Rogers, expressed outrage during a meeting with elected officials Monday.

"After you've put in hundreds of millions of dollars, why are you now stopping this situation?" Rogers asked. "You expect people to fight your wars, come home missing legs, and then you tell them, 'No, we're not gonna give you something in the Bay Area.'"

Local leaders echoed those frustrations. Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee said veterans shouldn't have to travel far for basic healthcare. Alameda Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft criticized the VA for failing to follow proper procedures when canceling the project.

"There is a process when a project like this is canceled. There are procedures you must follow - none of which were followed," Ashcraft said.

California congressional leaders sent a letter last week to VA Secretary Douglas Collins demanding answers, but East Bay officials say those inquiries have been brushed aside.

The project was expected to serve about 280,000 veterans in the Bay Area, providing a dedicated health clinic and burial site. A 2021 environmental report found no major regulatory obstacles during planning phases, raising questions about why the VA pulled the plug.

Veterans like Moriana and Rogers say they won't stop fighting.

"I've always fought for the veterans. I always will fight," Rogers said.