On Feb. 26, 2014, the Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY was sold to VestaCare for a price of $16 million.

DUNKIRK – Chautauqua County has completed the sale of the Chautauqua County Home to VestraCare. The sale was finalized on the final day of 2014.

The Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk was a 216-bed skilled nursing facility specializing in rehabilitation and long term health care. It was owned and operated by Chautauqua County since 1960 and in the past few years its operations were reviewed by the County and the Center for Governmental Research in an effort to find ways to save money for county taxpayers.

VestraCare first showed interest in buying the facility from the County in August 2013. Although its first offer to purchase the County Home was voted down by the County Legislature in October 2013, its second offer of $16 million was approved by the legislature in February 2014.

The contract signed between Chautauqua County and VestraCare will give preferred admission to county residents and give current residents the right to remain.  VestraCare also agreed to interview all current employees who filed an application and passed a background check, and it is expected that the majority of current employees will continue to work for VestraCare. The facility will now operate as the Chautauqua Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

The sick pay benefit was part of the contract between the county and the CSEA union that represents the county home employees. Because the county home is being sold to VestraCare, the employees will not have the opportunity to utilize the remaining sick pay in their contract. As a result, county lawmakers agreed to provide the $170,000, which will be split among those workers who had not used their maximum amount of sick time.

The resolution passed 17 to 1 with Fredonia’s Bob Scudder voting against the measure. Legislator George Borello was absent from the meeting.

On Feb. 26, 2014, the Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY was sold to VestaCare for a price of $16 million.

MAYVILLE – The Chautauqua County Legislature will once again be seeking federal funding to help pay for the cost of operating the Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk. On Wednesday night, lawmakers approved a resolution to apply for more than $2.6 million in funding from the federal Intergovernmental Transfer program, also known as IGT.

In order to receive the money, the county most also earmark $2.6 million in matching local funds, which will be coming out of the county’s unreserved fund balance. In all, more than $5.25 million will be requested to help cover the cost of operating the county home.

County Executive Vince Horrigan had asked the legislature to consider applying for the funding. He said that that by receiving the IGT money, it will help to close a looming $7 million budget gap.

“It’s going to net us the money we need to help us through this year, but the comments (from legislators) are exactly right as we look at the five-year projection (for county finances),” Horrigan said. “We have a mismatch of recurring revenue and recurring expenses and we’ve got to close that, so I’m looking at many, many different options.”

The application for the funding comes six months after the legislature approved the sale of the county home to VestraCare. However, the ownership has not been finalized and the county is still operating the home, meaning it will qualify for IGT funds. But as Jamestown Legislator and Audit & Control Committee member Chuck Nazzaro explains, the IGT money will have to stay with the county home until after the sale is final.

“Any IGT funding we get, will have to go to the County Home’s fund balance,” Nazzaro explained to WRFA following Wednesday’s meeting. “Once the sale is finalized, we’ll have to close out the books (for the home), which will happen in early 2015. So what’s ever left of the assets – which will include this IGT money – can then be transferred to the Chautauqua County fund balance, and technically there’s no restrictions on what that money can be used for once its been transferred.”

During the 2014 budget deliberations that took place last fall, lawmakers at that time had decided to include a request for IGT funding in the budget. The reasoning was that if included in the final budget, the local match for IGT would come by way of property taxes. Lawmakers say that by waiting until now to request IGT, the local contribution doesn’t come from the tax levy, but instead form the county’s unreserved fund balance.

Chautauqua County Executive Vince Horrigan.

MAYVILLE – Following the Chautauqua County Legislature’s decision to sell the Chautauqua County Home, County Executive Vince Horrigan said he and his staff will be doing all it can to help in the transition of the county home. He also said that while the decision to sell is a tough one, it will also prove to be the right one.

“We, in Chautauqua County, have a lot of Challenges ahead of us,” Horrigan said. “This decision tonight means the county nursing home will be there for the seniors and there will be additional services.”

Horrigan said he would be in immediate contact with VestraCare to begin the transition process. Horrigan says VestraCare is committed to letting workers remain in the union and would continue to offer anyone currently working at the facility a position with the new owner.

“So for employees that want to know their options, we’re going to be right there to explain all of their options,” explained Horrigan. “And for the new owners to be able to come in and interview and offer employment to those that do pass the background check and do the basic tests that they have to do and apply.”

The sale of the home is still not final. A “certificate of need” must still be reviewed and approved by the New York State Department of Health. Horrigan says that could take anywhere from six to 12 months to be finalized.

On Feb. 26, 2014, the Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY was sold to VestaCare for a price of $16 million.

MAYVILLE – The Chautauqua County Legislature has given its approval for the privatization of the county home in Dunkirk.

Lawmakers voted Wednesday to approve the sale of the 216-bed skilled nursing facility to VestraCare with a price tag of $16 Million. The final vote was 13 to 5, with all lawmakers representing the Dunkirk and Fredonia areas voting against the sale. Thirteen votes were needed for the sale to go through, with County Legislature Chairman Jay Gould absent due to illness. The successful vote comes only after three previous failed attempts in 2013 to sell the facility.

SALE WAS INEVITABLE

The legislature spent 20 minutes discussing the sale prior to voting. Dunkirk Legislator Terry Niebel pleaded with his colleagues to hold off on selling, saying that the property was worth a lot more than the $16 million that was being offered.

“the only valuation that we have is from 1997 and that was a full valuation…. and that valued the county home at $23.9 million,” Niebel explained, adding, “That was actually six years before the $18 million renovation. And even since then, we’ve put $400,000 into a gas well and another $800,000 into a boiler and air conditioning system.”

Niebel suggested that lawmakers take the time to due a new valuation of the property to have an up-to-date assessment, saying that in the meantime, the county home could still operate for another two years without any additional taxpayer money.

Despite Niebel’s reasoning, Jamestown legislator Fred Larson explained that the sale of the county home would be inevitable and, considering the current offer from VestraCare would expire at the end of this month, failure to act now means the county would only be flushing money down the drain.

“If the county home is not sold tonight, it will be sold next month, probably for another $500,000 less,” Larson explained. “The buyer knows that next month there will be 13 votes in favor of selling for $15.5 million. There is simply no point to dragging this agony out and costing the taxpayers another half million dollars by waiting until next month or the month after to sell.”

CUTTING THE SAFETY NET

Prior to the vote, the legislature spent nearly 45 minutes listening to comments from the 14 members of the public, which were overwhelmingly against selling the facility.

Among those who spoke was Jamestown resident and former legislator Timothy Hoyer, who said that the county home provides a safety net for many senior residents who have no where else to go and that by selling the home, the county would be turning its back on those who are most in need of help.

Jamestown resident and local CSEA president Steve Skidmore also commented, saying that workers at the home have always been willing to make concessions. “Over and over I saw it reported in the paper that the CSEA wouldn’t come to the bargaining table to try and do our part and do what [the CGR study] said we can do with the county,” Skidmore said. ” It was patently untrue. We sent letter after letter to the county executive and he just ignored them.”

North county resident Joanne Niebel also was against the sale, saying the county home not only supports residents who need senior care and may not get it anywhere else, but also provides quality jobs that contribute to the local economy. “We have people in the community gleeful that these people are going to lose their paychecks and benefits, when they’re the ones who support the communities in the north, when we have nothing else. I mean, you couldn’t even keep a cookie factory in Silver Creek.”

The lone person to express his support for selling the facility was County Chamber of Commerce President Todd Tranum. “Failure to vote ‘yes’ and proceed with the sale, as many of you know, is just kicking the hard decision down the road. You do not want a situation – where many of you may still be in this room – two or three years from now having to make the difficult decision that other county’s have had to make to close the county home.”

Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY.

MAYVILLE – It’s going to be a busy night at the County Seat in Mayville as the Chautauqua County Legislature holds its monthly voting session.

Topping the list of items on tonight’s agenda is a resolution to sell the Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk to VestraCare for $16 million. Since January of 2013, the legislature has tried three times to sell the skilled nursing facility with little success. However, with a new legislature in place for 2014, supporters of privatizing the county home seem confident that there will be enough votes tonight for the sale to go forward.

Earlier this month, legislators spent nearly an hour-and-a-half questioning VestraCare vice president Edward Farbenblum and administrator Shannon Cayea-Delker to learn more about their operation and what the future holds for the skilled nursing facility in Dunkirk, should a purchase take place.

During his Feb. 5 presentation, Farbenblum assured lawmakers that he takes a hands-on approach to running his facilities and if any issues or problems were to come up following the sale, he could be directly contacted by lawmakers. “My absolute promise to you is that the buck stops here. If you’re a county legislature in this county you’ll have my cell phone number and you’ll have Shannon’s cell phone number and if you have a problem you can call one of us.”

Chautauqua County Legislator Terry Niebel (R-Dunkirk) talks with VestraCare’s Edward Farbenblum following a Q&A session with the legislature on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014.

Not all lawmakers are in favor of the sale. While 13 of the 19 members need to approve it, five are expected to vote against the sale. They are North County legislators Keith Alhstrom, Shaun Heenan, Janet Keith, Terry Neibel and Bob Scudder. Also, at least one news outlet is reporting that Legislator Chairman Jay Gould is ill and will most likely miss tonight’s meeting. Meaning that if one other legislator votes against the sale or is unable to attend, it will not go forward.

The selling of the county home has been a contentious issue with lawmakers since it was first proposed by former County Executive Greg Edwards in 2011. Proponents say selling the home will remove unnecessary costs in county government, while opponents of the sale say privatization will reduce the quality of care for the resident at the Dunkirk-based facility.

Tonight’s meeting begins at 6:30 in the legislative chambers in Mayville. It will be open to the public and any resident or group wishing to speak out on the matter will be allowed to do so at the beginning of the meeting.

Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY.

MAYVILLE – The effort to sell the Chautauqua County Home to VestraCare has cleared another hurdle. On Thursday the county legislature’s audit and control committee approved a contract to sell the skilled nursing facility for $16 million by a unanimous vote. It will go before the full legislature next Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, the committee also passed a proposed contract for the union representing county sheriff’s deputies. It contains no salary increase for deputies in 2012, but does have a 2-percent salary increase each year from 2013 through 2016. If approved by the legislature, the 2013 increase would be a retroactive payment to all deputies who worked during that year. The contract will also be discussed and possibly acted on during next week’s full legislature meeting.

Chautauqua County Home in Dunkirk, NY.

MAYVILLE – The President of the union that works at the Chautauqua County Home says he heard some positive things from a group of buyers who want to buy the skilled nursing facility, but they also left a few of his questions unanswered.

CSEA Chautauqua County Unit President Steve Skidmore represents the 280 employees who work at the county home in Dunkirk and who are fighting to keep the facility publicly owned by the county. Skidmore says that while representatives from VestraCare said that they would employee the same number of employees, if not more, while also providing similar wages, he said the didn’t guarantee the current employees would be able to keep their jobs.

He also said the representatives were not clear about a possible tax break they would be getting from the county for $1 million in upgrades that are included in the proposed contract. “It’s right in this agreement that they will get a million dollar PILOT program from the IDA, so when they say they’re going to spend a million dollars to improve the Chautauqua County Home, they’re going to spend IDA money and taxpayers money to improve the home. That’s not their money.”

The county legislature will be acting Feb. 26 on the sale of the home for $16 million to VestraCare. In the meantime, Skidmore says he will continue to try and persuade lawmakers that selling the home would be the wrong decision.

The Post-Journal reported earlier this month that about 170 employees signed a petition saying they’d be willing to break from the union and re-negotiate a contract with the county to find a way to reduce costs and keep the facility publicly owned. Skimdore says he is aware of that effort, but also says the union has been willing to make concessions throughout the process.

“They weren’t positive the union was doing enough to negotiate the changes,” Skinner explained. “But two years ago the we tried to talk with Greg Edwards and he refused at every letter we sent to him. He never would sit down and negotiate… I doubt that [Vince] Horrigan is going to do that just because he’s going to worry about the sale first. If the sale doesn’t go through then we’ll sit down with him.”

On Feb. 5, Edward Farbenblum and Shannon Cayea-Delker from VestraCare talked with the legislature for an hour-and-a-half about their new offer to buy the county home.  While some lawmakers appear to be against the sale, it looks as though the proposal would have enough of the 13 votes needed in order for it to go forward.

VestraCare administrator Shannon Cayea-Delker and vice president Edward Farbenblum respond to one of the questions that was posed to them during a special meeting of the Chautauqua County Legislature on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014.

MAYVILLE – “Our mission is to help people.” That was the reassuring message delivered by the company that wants to purchase the Chautauqua County Home for $16 million when it met with the Chautauqua County Legislature on Wednesday.

During a special work session, legislators spent nearly an hour-and-a-half questioning VestraCare vice president Edward Farbenblum and administrator Shannon Cayea-Delker to learn more about their operation and what the future holds for the skilled nursing facility in Dunkirk, should a purchase take place.

• READ PROPOSED VESTRACARE CONTRACT

Farbenblum, who also spoke to the legislature in August and in October of last year, reiterated his company’s plan for senior care and why they are looking to purchase the County Home.

“It’s about expanding program lines and its about that more difficult, more acute resident who needs a more hands-on, higher skill level of care,” Farbenblum said. “We believe that this facility, for a whole bunch of demographic reasons and physical plant reasons, is ripe to be converted into that facility – the vision that we are planning.”

During the Q & A with lawmakers, legislator Fred Larson (D-Jamestown) asked specifically about Vestracares benefits for employees. Cayea-Delker and Farbenblum both confirmed that the company’s contribution for both retirement and healthcare would be significantly less than what the county is paying. Larson said that alone would result in an operating budget that is $1.5 million less than what the county is currently paying, adding that it’s no mystery how VestraCare could turn a profit on the home, even though the county can not.

“We hand the keys to you… and you’re a million-and-a-half to the good before you change anything else,” Larson explained. “So its no mystery to me and it’s no mystery to the employees at the home, it’s not a mystery to the people that maybe feel badly about the county selling this. How could you do something that we can’t do? There’s two simple answers.”

Farbenblum also said that any employee that currently works at the facility would be given the opportunity to continue working there, following a screening process that includes a background check and drug testing.

Chautauqua County Legislator Terry Niebel (R-Dunkirk) talks with VestraCare’s Edward Farbenblum following a Q&A session with the legislature on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014.

As for the care of the 218 residents in the home, which has been one of the main concern for many in the north county, Cayea-Delker assured the legislature and county residents that all residents would receive the same level of care, if not greater because VestraCare plans to increase staffing in some areas. She also said that any of the indigent residents currently living in the facility would also still have a home there, once a sale went through – regardless of their financial situation.

“I am a social worker, by background, and I am a ‘bleading heart.’ In no way, shape or form do we intend to evict any resident because [they are indigent]. We will assist them in finding a payer source.”

Legislators also questioned the timeline of when VestraCare would begin expanding operations, with both Farbenblum and Cayea-Delker saying that new services could begin within a year or two after they purchase the home.

The most contentious portion of the Q&A was between legislator Terry Niebel (R-Dunkrik) and Farbenblum. Niebel feels that the $16million offer by VestraCare is far below what it is actually worth, saying the number could actually be twice the asking price. However, Farbenblum countered by saying that the market dictates the price and based on his company’s analysis, $16 million was the number they felt most comfortable in offering, given the investments they plan to make in the future along with the taxes they’ll be paying on the property if it were to be privatized.

The selling of the county home has been a contentious issue with lawmakers since it was first proposed by former County Executive Greg Edwards in 2011. Since then the county has spent money on a county home feasibility study by the Rochester, NY firm, Center for Governmental Research. The issue of selling the home also went before the legislature three times in 2013, although all three efforts – including one to VestraCare – were unsuccessful.  Proponents say selling the home will remove unnecessary costs in county government, while opponents of the sale say privatization will reduce the quality of care for the resident at the Dunkirk-based facility.

The next vote on the sale of the County Home will take place Feb. 26 at 6:30 in the legislative chambers in Mayville. It will be open to the public and any resident or group wishing to speak out on the matter will be allowed to do so at the beginning of the meeting.