Edgerton nursing home, hospital could be close to agreement
EDGERTON — Edgerton Care Center and Edgerton Hospital could be close to an agreement that would settle the care center’s future, representatives of both groups said early this week.
The hospital is preparing to offer the care center land at the hospital’s new site, said Dorothy Gunderson, chairwoman of the Edgerton Hospital and Health Services Board. She declined to comment on terms of the offer.
Marilynn Perry, administrator of the Edgerton Care Center, has heard discussions about the offer and hopes it will be acceptable to the care center board, she said.
“It all depends on the location of the land (on the site),” she said. “It depends on how much work is required in the preparation of the land.”
The care center, a 61-bed nursing home on two floors of the hospital, was officially part of the hospital when the hospital bought 70 acres along Highway 59 for a new facility. The plan was to construct separate buildings for the hospital and care center.
But the care center and hospital became two entities in 2008. The care center started looking for an alternate location for its new building last year when it couldn’t agree with the hospital on terms for land at the new site.
That disagreement might be put to rest soon, officials said.
The hospital board has agreed on terms to offer the care center, Gunderson said. It hopes to make the offer within a week.
But any offer would be contingent on approval by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is financing the hospital’s $26 million building. HUD announced the hospital will receive the loan in December, but it hasn’t officially given the loan yet.
If an agreement is reached, the hospital and care center won’t make the terms public until the loan is finalized, Gunderson said.
“Just as long as the two groups continue to work together so we have a good outcome for everyone, that’s the most important for the community,” Gunderson said.
Earlier offers from the hospital weren’t acceptable to the care center, Perry said.
The hospital originally offered to lease land on Highway 59 to the care center, but the terms weren’t acceptable to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The care center hopes to finance its $6 million to $7 million building through the USDA.
Then the hospital offered the care center 3.4 acres at its old site on Stoughton Road, Perry said. But that would have required the care center to redesign its plans to fit a smaller space.
Plus, no one knows what will happen to the existing hospital building, Perry said.
“We feel that is not an appropriate placement,” she said.
Care center officials believe the hospital should give the center land at the new site, she said.
“We feel pretty much that the (money for the) land was donated for both projects,” she said.
The proposed agreement will waive rent for the care center at the existing building through March, Gunderson said. The hospital has waived rent since the two organizations split, but in 2009 it told the care center it would start charging rent in 2010.
Jan 21, 2010 at 9:46 a.m.
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etownguy -- Your own comment about never wanting to go to the current hospital really says it all. In the future, who would want to go to some outdated, retrofitted facility? Not you. Not me. They have been doing patchwork to the existing hospital for too long, and the current site (in the middle of a residential area on the opposite side of town from the interstate) has always been a poor location.
Jan 21, 2010 at 8:41 a.m.
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etownguy what you are saying doesn't even make sense. The hospital is a non profit charitable organization. once again you need to get your facts straight about what is being added at the new facility. And unless you have studied the current facility have experience with making the determination as to whether to build new or try to update the current facility, maybe you should keep an open mind. You obviously know nothing about healthcare or what a non profit charitable organization is/does and what the state regulations are. The current hospital was built entirely on donations. Now if you want to talk about building a useless building, maybe you should comment on the "new" city hall they want to build with your taxpayer dollars.
Jan 21, 2010 at 8:16 a.m.
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ehhsemp......just because it's not owned or operated by the city doesn't mean the move isn't political and I still believe someone is seeing a large sum of money for convincing everyone this is the right thing to do. It's interesting also why a private business is expanding based off of mostly donations. Doesn't sound like a self sustaining business to me!
It would cost less to update the current facility....even if they had to add on than to abandon it all together. That's a fact. Not to mention what will this new facility offer that the old one didn't? It sounds to me all that they are doing is adding a clinic and a few more beds. That's not enhancing care by any means. When St Mary's is building in Janesville as well as Mercy....why would anyone choose to stay in Edgerton? I've lived in Edgerton most of my life (I was even born at the current facility) and there is no way I would be treated there now. Take me to St Mary's in Madison or Stoughton.
As far as facts go.....bring your head above the sand every now and again and look at the long term and larger pictures. In all reality it's another business leaving Edgerton.
Jan 21, 2010 at 6:57 a.m.
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etownguy the only politics that are in play here are between the hospital and nursing home. The hospital is privately owned as is the nursing home. The city does not have any real say in what happens. The cost to build the new hospital is supported by donations to the Hospital Foundation and directly from the hospital itself, none of your local taxes go toward the hospital. As for the current hospital/nursing home building. In order to make the current building up to hospital or nursing home current code (some things have been grandfathered in) it would be quite expensive. I don't think you realize how much more strict the state is on building codes for hospitals and nursing homes. As far as putting the nursing home on the same grounds as the new hospital, I don't see how you think that is out in the middle of nowhere. It would be in a much better location just off the interstate and on a main road leading into Edgerton. The current building is more way out in the middle of nowhere than the new one will be. I would suggest that if you really don't know what you are talking about that you do some research before posting on a public blog incorrect information.
Jan 21, 2010 at 2:55 a.m.
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etownguy: I would also like more information on the present building and its future. What are the reasons necessitating that the care center relocate? If upgrading is needed, at what cost?
Jan 20, 2010 at 10:50 p.m.
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I'm looking forward to the new Hospital, but I hope that the hospital can work something out with the Care Center...Cripes, I might be needing the Care Center before too long!
Jan 20, 2010 at 4:54 p.m.
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That's awesome Gunderson.....move the long term care/nursing home out in the middle of nowhere. So they are planning on just leaving the current hospital vacant.....basically abandoning it? Awesome. It's political and someone in town has to be seeing a fat check out of these kind of negotiations.
Bad move all the way around.
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