Report Cites Gross Mismanagement of Denver VA Hospital Project

AURORA, Colo. — The Office of Inspector General released an 82-page report in September that cited “gross mismanagement, delays and lax oversight” by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), which added millions of dollars to the cost of the Denver Replacement Medical Center, Eastern Colorado Health Care System currently under construction in Aurora.

The report accused VA officials of making poor business decisions on the VA hospital project that included allowing architects to incorporate unnecessary design features and delaying construction decisions by up to three years. The officials also assigned too few engineers and project managers, according to the report.

The report also found that Glenn Haggstrom, a former senior VA official, knew that the project would go over budget as early as January 2013. However, he testified before Congress in May 2013 and again in April 2014 that the project was within its $800 million budget, reported FOX31 Denver, a local news station. The hospital is now expected to cost about $1.7 billion, nearly tripling that estimate.

As of now, everyone involved with the budget issue has either retired, transferred or been demoted within the department, Sloan Gibson, deputy secretary of Veterans Affairs, told The Associated Press. No one has been fired or criminally charged; however, some members of Congress want the Justice Department to look into perjury charges against Haggstrom and others involved in the project planning.

“This report makes two things abundantly clear: There are many more people responsible for the biggest construction failure in VA history than the department has led the public to believe, and it is possible that former VA Construction Chief Glenn Haggstrom or other employees committed perjury in hiding information regarding the project’s cost overruns during congressional testimony,” said Rep. Jeff Miller, chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, in a statement.

Miller also said in the statement that he will renew his call for the VA to immediately fire Office of Construction and Facilities Management Executive Director Stella Fiotes, who presided over the Denver project’s mismanagement. As of now, the VA is under new leadership and said it takes full responsibility of the mistakes made in Colorado, ensuring the public that it will not happen again.

The 184-bed VA hospital will replace the existing, overcrowded facility still in use in Denver. Construction is currently about 70 percent completed, and is expected to be operational in early 2018 after an “activation period” that includes integrating moving medical and clerical equipment. Kiewit Building Group and Turner Construction — both of which have offices in Denver — formed Kiewit-Turner, a Joint Venture, to build the project.