New Sarasota VA Clinic Awarded on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, Hoar to Build

The Sarasota VA clinic is getting a larger replacement: the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has awarded a lease for a new two story outpatient clinic at 2390 Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, to be developed by a joint venture of Cullinan Properties and Construction Managers Inc. and built by Hoar Construction, with construction expected to start in 2027 (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

The new building will replace the existing Sarasota VA Clinic and will be operated through the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, serving veterans in Sarasota and Manatee counties (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB); Tampa Bay Business & Wealth). The award was announced October 28 (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth).

What Happened

The VA selected a joint venture of Illinois based Cullinan Properties and North Carolina based Construction Managers Inc. (CMI), a service disabled veteran owned small business. Tampa Bay Business & Wealth identified the entity as CMI Cullinan JV LLC, and the VA statement quoted by WWSB names the lessor as Cullinan JV LLC. Under the lease structure, the joint venture will develop and own the building and lease it to the VA (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

The project team includes architect Leo A Daly, general contractor Hoar Construction and civil engineer Vanasse Hangen Brustlin (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth). The companies did not disclose the construction cost, the length of the lease or the rent (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth).

Sarasota VA Clinic: Size, Services and Schedule

• Size: Tampa Bay Business & Wealth reported 135,000 square feet. WWSB, citing the VA, reported 109,688 square feet. The sources do not explain the difference (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).
• Services: primary care, mental health, audiology, dental, eye care, physical and occupational therapy, prosthetics, laboratory testing, pharmacy, telehealth and diagnostic care (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).
• Care model: the VA says the added space will let Bay Pines fully adopt its Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) model (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).
• Patients: the clinic is projected to serve more than 120,000 veterans a year (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).
• Schedule: the project is in design. Tampa Bay Business & Wealth reported a summer 2027 construction start with completion and first patients in 2029, while WWSB reported construction projected to begin in late 2027 (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

Who Is Behind It

The developers have recent VA experience in the region. Cullinan developed the 150,000 square foot Tampa VA Mental Health Center in Temple Terrace, which opened in 2023, and is building a 256,000 square foot VA clinic in Copperas Cove, Texas, which broke ground October 8. The Sarasota award is CMI’s 19th VA clinic award (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth).

Bay Pines VA Medical Center Director David J. VanMeter called the future clinic a symbol of the VA’s commitment to veterans (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)). One Venice resident told WWSB her husband visits VA clinics about eight times a year and hopes a closer facility will mean fewer drives to St. Petersburg, and a retired VA employee compared the planned building to the VA facility in Cape Coral (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

Where Things Stand

The lease is awarded and design is underway. No construction contract value has been published, and the start date is expected in 2027, with sources differing on summer versus late 2027 (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)). Large outpatient buildings are a growing part of health care construction nationally, a trend WCG has followed in its coverage of hospital and clinic work (U.S. Hospital Construction Hits a Generational High: 79 Million Square Feet Underway).

Implications for Owners, Developers, Contractors and Subs

• Build to lease is a federal delivery path. The VA is getting this clinic through a private developer that will own the building, which shifts financing and construction risk to the joint venture and its general contractor (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth).
• Trade packages will be health care heavy. The reported mix of dental, laboratory, pharmacy, therapy and diagnostic space points to specialty mechanical, electrical and plumbing scope for Sarasota and Manatee subcontractors, based on the services list reported by Tampa Bay Business & Wealth.
• Bid timing is 2027. With design underway and a 2027 start, no subcontractor bidding schedule has been announced for the Lakewood Ranch site yet, so trades have time to position (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).
• Federal requirements apply. VA facilities carry their own design and security standards, so trades should expect detailed submittal and documentation requirements.

What to Watch

• Confirmation of the final building size, given the gap between the 135,000 and 109,688 square foot figures (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).
• Site plan approvals and a firm groundbreaking date for 2390 Lakewood Ranch Boulevard.
• Plans for the current clinic building once the replacement opens (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

Bottom Line

The VA has committed to a new, larger outpatient clinic on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, delivered through a developer lease with Hoar Construction as general contractor. Construction is expected to start in 2027 and patients are expected in 2029, giving the Sarasota and Manatee market a sizable federal health care project to plan around (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

Key Questions

Where will the new Sarasota VA clinic be built?

The new Sarasota VA clinic will be built at 2390 Lakewood Ranch Boulevard in the Sarasota area and will replace the existing Sarasota VA Clinic (ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

Who is building the new Sarasota VA clinic?

A joint venture of Cullinan Properties and Construction Managers Inc. will develop and own the Sarasota VA clinic, with Leo A Daly as architect and Hoar Construction as general contractor (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth).

When will construction start on the Sarasota VA clinic?

Construction on the new Sarasota VA clinic is expected to begin in 2027, with Tampa Bay Business & Wealth citing summer 2027 and WWSB citing late 2027 (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth; ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB)).

How much will the new VA clinic in Lakewood Ranch cost?

The construction cost, lease length and rent for the new VA clinic on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard have not been disclosed (Tampa Bay Business & Wealth).

Related Coverage

• U.S. Hospital Construction Hits a Generational High: 79 Million Square Feet Underway
• URochester Seeks Approval for 172,000 SF Clinic at Former Marketplace Mall

Image credit: Tampa Bay Business & Wealth (project rendering). Image from the source article.

Sources

• Tampa Bay Business & Wealth, VA Awards Contract for New 135,000-Square-Foot Sarasota Clinic, https://tbbwmag.com/2026/10/30/sarasota-va-clinic/
• ABC7 Sarasota (WWSB), New VA clinic planned to replace Sarasota facility, https://www.mysuncoast.com/2026/10/30/new-va-clinic-planned-replace-sarasota-facility/