Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY.

MAYVILLE – More details are coming out about the proposed sale of the Chautauqua County Home that will go before county lawmakers next month in Mayville.

Chautauqua County Executive Vince Horrigan announced on Wednesday that he has signed an asset purchase agreement to begin the process of selling the county-owned skilled nursing facility in Dunkirk to two corporations formed last year by VestraCare of Roslyn, N.Y.

• VIEW ASSET PURCHASE AGREEMENT

According to Horrigan, VestraCare’s latest offer is for a purchase price of $16 million as compared to its $16.5 million dollar offer last September.  However, the new agreement includes a provision confirming that VestraCare is considering up to $1,000,000 in capital improvements to the County Home.

The Chautauqua County Legislature will be holding a special meeting on February 5 to have a presentation and question and answer session with representatives of VestraCare. The purchase is then scheduled to go up to a vote for the legislature during its monthly meeting on Feb. 26, where it would need 13 of 19 votes to be approved.

Chautauqua County Executive Vince Horrigan.

During an interview with WRFA earlier this month, Horrigan said that even if the sale does go forward, it would still take some time before the sale is completed. “If the county legislature approves privatization, there is a process called ‘Certificate of Need.’ This is where the state health department does a complete review. They review the potential buyer, they review all the details… and they also look at the need for the number of skilled nursing beds in Chautauqua County, at that relates to the Medicaid piece.”

Horrigan says that in all, it could take anywhere from a few months to nearly a year for the review process to be completed. “During that time i want to make sure that we are very carefully taking care of the employees, taking care of the residents and continuing to operate a very top-quality nursing home.”

According to the county executive, VestraCare’s current offer to purchase the County Home will expire on February 27 – a day after it is slated to go up for a vote.

VestraCare, which would be doing business as Dunkirk Reality Holdings LLC and Dunkirk Operating LLC, first showed interest in the Chautauqua County Home in August 2013.  This will be VestraCare’s second attempt to purchase the home. The first purchase offer fell one vote short of approval by the County Legislature last October.  Several of those who voted against the sale, including former legislature minority leader Bob Whitney, Jamestown’s Lori Cornell, Brocton’s Tom DeJoe and Fredonia’s Billy Coughlin – are no longer on the legislature.

Proponents say that selling the home will alleviate the county’s growing property tax burden by reducing expenditure’s in the annual operating budget. Those who want the county to keep operating the home say that the quality of service for residents in the home will diminish if it were to be privatized.

There will also be elections for the downsized county legislature, which will have just 19 seats starting in January 2014, compared to the current 25 seats. In all, there will be 10 contested races for the legislature:

• District 3: Bob Scudder (R,C-Fredonia); Billy Coughlin (D,WF,I-Fredonia)
• District 4: Janet Keefe (D,WF,I-Fredonia); Michael Sullivan (R, C-Fredonia)
• District 5: Susan Baldwin (D-South Dayton); Terry Niebel (R,C,I-Dunkirk)
• District 7: John Runkle (R,C,I-Stockton); Tom DeJoe (D,WF-Brocton)
• District 10: P.J. Wendell (R,C-Lakewood); Sharon Lisciandro (D,I-Lakewood)
• District 11: Dave Wilfong (R,C-Jamestown); Bob Whitney (D,WF,I-Jamestown)
• District 12: William Prieto (R,C-Jamestown); Fred Larson (D,I-Jamestown)
• District 15: Lisa Vanstrom (R,I-West Ellicott); Sam Ognibene (D,C-Falconer)
• District 16: Ron Lemon (R,C-Frewburg); Tom Erlandson (D,I-Frewsburg)
• District 18: David Himelein (R,C,I-Findley Lake); Ed Carutis (D,WF-Sherman)

There are also three Jamestown city council seats that will contested:

• Ward I: Tara Hall (D); Brent Sheldon (R,C)
• Ward III:  Regina Brackman (D); Tamara Dickey (R,C)
• Ward IV: Marie Carrubba (D,WF,I); Richard Elardo (R,C)

For more details on this year’s race, including audio from candidate, visit www.WRFALP.com/election-2013. Information regarding all races for 2013 can also be found at www.VoteChautauqua.com.