Walls are up, asphalt has been poured and shrubbery is in place as workers are in the home stretch to complete the new U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs clinic in Oakwood, with opening still expected in the spring.Construction “is following the timeline beautifully” on the 16,000-square-foot Community Based Outpatient Clinic, said David Peters, project manager for the VA.The $774,000 building, which is on Tanners Creek Drive, off Thurmon Tanner Parkway and just north of H.F. Reed Industrial Parkway, is set to open in April, he said.Construction could wrap up about six weeks earlier than that, giving the VA time to move operations from the current site off Mundy Mill Road, across from Gainesville State College and at the entrance to Wal-Mart in Oakwood.A grand opening ceremony could take place a month or so after the opening.“We want to make sure we have everything working properly before we have the official event,” Peters said.The VA opened the current 4,500-square-foot clinic in 1999 to relieve overcrowded operations in Decatur. Later, a clinic was opened in Blairsville to take some pressure off the growing Oakwood clinic. In addition to a population surge over the years, the Hall County area has seen a spike in the number of aging veterans who need care.