BELMONT — For the month of October, it will be Manor Thursdays in Lafayette County, as the county government will be hosting informational meetings throughout the county, to inform the public about the $45.5 million referendum question asking to build a new nursing home, as well as a four-year question to shift any costs of Lafayette Manor off the general levy.
Allison Taylor, Director of Lafayette County Economic Development Corporation, was the emcee of the informational meeting, presenting the information about the project to the assembled public.
Taylor noted that with the referenda questions, the idea is to build a new nursing home to replace the 1961 Lafayette Manor building, that the new manor would be placed at the former Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County site, and that it was estimated to cost $45.5 million.
Taylor went over the reasons why the county was looking at this.
For one thing, the current facility is showing its age, and has limitations on what it can add. Built more than six decades ago, the current manor is working well, but has rooms they cannot use because of infrastructure, like water and waste pipes, that need to be replaced. Residents share bathrooms, and the facility is in a location that makes any additions cost-prohibitive.
Manor Maintenance Supervisor Tom Curry noted that while the building is certified for 50 beds, they specifically hold a couple of rooms open in case there is a failure that would make them have to move a couple of the residents.
In addition, because of the needs in updates for the facility, any renovation would likely take up to two years, at which time all the residents would need to move to other facilities.
Taylor stated the staff have kept the Manor running well, regaining their two-star rating from the Veterans Administration, and the facility is currently not using any levy dollars.
“Things have to be updated to continue our long-term care,” Taylor stated.
The new facility would emulate the current one with 50 beds. Taylor explained that the number is the certification from the state for the size they can be, and because of limitations on the state level, they cannot get any bigger.
One of the first questions raised by the audience was what would happen to the current Manor. Taylor noted that the building is the county’s and the land underneath is the City of Darlington’s and the moment the county knows it is moving forward with a new nursing home, the county and city would work to see about future use for the current facility.
Another person in the audience wondered why the county was in the nursing home business, and did not instead find a company to take over operations.
County Board Chair Jack Sauer shared a long history of being approached by several outside firms to take over the operation. Sauer lamented that every time he brought up any contract to have a guarantee that these beds would remain in Lafayette County, even for a time frame of a decade, those firms backed away.
Sauer stated that the outside firms have been interested in the bed licensed, not serving the county, and those beds would be moved to another part of the state, meaning there would no longer be a nursing home in the county.
One person in the audience pointed to the former nursing home in Cuba City, now since shuttered.
“The biggest reason we are doing this is no one else wants to,” Taylor remarked, noting her own attempts to lobby for developers for different projects to come to Lafayette County.
Lafayette County Supervisor Mark Pinch, who voted against the referenda questions, asked if the county board would simply push forward a project even if it was rejected by the voters.
Sauer replied that doing something would be electoral suicide. “How many of you would win the next election if you went against the referendum,” Sauer remarked, noting that the supervisors are up for reelection in spring 2028.
Showing friction on the board, Supervisor Scott Pedley noted that the vote the board took was to give the decision to the people. “I was astonished by two of our members who voted ‘no’ to send the question to you.”
Other individuals spoke up about the cost. In Belmont, there are alternative locations close by, as there is a licensed nursing home in Platteville.
Some were concerned with the cost, and the lack of information specifically listing what a taxpayer would pay (see related column).
Another person in the crowd, who had worked at the nursing home, noted they will need a facility like it some day, and wanted a place where seniors do not need to wait for their neighbor to get out of the bathroom so they can go, or not worry about getting stuck in a failing elevator.
“They deserve something better.”