BUTLER TWP — The groundbreaking for the new $75 million VA Butler Healthcare center occurred this morning under sunny skies.

The 168,000-square-foot building will have three floors. It is expected to more efficiently provide outpatient services, including primary care, specialty care, mental health, dental, diagnostic, laboratory, pathology, radiology, podiatry, optometry, pharmacy, physical rehabilitation and women’s health.

The VA will lease the facility on the 21-acre Deshon Woods just south of the current VA facility from Westar Development of Aurora, Ohio, for $7.6 million annually.

Construction is expected to be done in the summer of 2014 and the facility is to open in 2015.

“I’m thrilled about this new, state of the art facility,” said John Gennaro, director of VA Butler Healthcare.

Samuel Calabrese, president of Westar Development, which is developing the property, said that the building will benefit veterans and Butler County.

“Westar is extremely excited to be involved in this project,” he said.

Timothy Burke, VA Butler Healthcare’s chief of staff, said that the building will improve patient experience and quality of care.

Burke said most of the major patient destinations will be on the first floor, to minimize excessive patient movement. There will be centralized, one-stop check in locations.

New technology for monitoring patient flow will be in use. There will be a centralized work area for health professionals.