STRATTON VA GETS $16M UPDATE.(Capital Region)

ALBANY -- The Stratton VA Medical Center is getting a makeover with the help of federal stimulus money.

The veterans' hospital is receiving $16.4 million as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to Stratton officials who held a news conference Friday at the Holland Avenue campus.

U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, and Mayor Jerry Jennings attended the announcement.

"This building is over 60 years old, and certainly renovations give us the opportunity to deliver health care in an appropriate environment," said Mary-Ellen Piche, director of the medical center. "We had projects on the shelf ready to go and were able to start …