County takes first steps to build new nursing home
By Donna Comella

The Wayne County Board of Supervisors now has a Nursing Home Construction Project underway and will begin the planning phase for the new building. When the board met yesterday morning, there was a presentation from those who had evaluated the county's needs. The study and assessment had been completed by county leaders on an Ad Hoc Building Committee, Clark Patterson Associates, Knowledge Systems & Research and Deloitte & Touche.

The three options laid out before the full board were - do nothing to the existing facility except repairs needed to bring it to code. The cost estimate for option 1 was $4.8 milllion. Option 2 carried a price tag of $25.8 million, but had some obstacles and financial problems. The third option - to build a new facility - was the most attractive to supervisors, and the cost was estimated just under the major renovation.

Financial tables showed that even with revenues of over 11 million dollars projected for 2003, the nursing home will have a net loss of almost $1.3 million. Because of that, several supervisors questioned whether or not the county should be in the nursing home business at all. But most agreed that it is a service that should be provided for our senior citizens.

Rose Supervisor Carm Pascarella asked what would be done with the 20-year-old building that is now the nursing home on Route 31. County Administrator Dan Kane listed several options, but said that an inventory of the county's buildings and needs will be completed in a few weeks.

The discussion soon turned to dollars and cents. Arcadia Supervisor Joe DeSanto said that some buildings are worth saving, even when renovation is more costly than new construction. He added, however, that you 'can't save an old masonry block building.'

Lyons Supervisor Jim Fabino disagreed, saying that Lyons has several fine old buildings that are not falling down. 'We have an 81-year-old school that you couldn't blow down with dynamite....' Fabino said he was tired of everybody saying 'you can't renovate' and called the project 'inflated.'

DeSanto, who is retired from the Pike Construction firm, serves on the Ad Hoc Building Committee. He responded to Fabino's claim that the project was inflated, saying that the 'numbers aren't out of line.' He reiterated, '...Some buildings deserve to be saved...' but said the best plan was to build or watch continued decay.

'I'm 78 years old and I'm not decaying,' said Fabino.

DeSanto made a remark about Fabino not being able to jitterbug, then told him, 'You're not listening. You've got your mind made up.' And with that, Chairman Marv Decker banged the gavel for a five minute break.

When the resolution made it to the floor to establish the project, there was more discussion. Fabino asked County Treasurer Tom Warnick for his opinion on the $25.7 million building plan. Warnick suggested that the matter be tabled until there could be further study of the 'financial implications.'

Warnick said that the board needs to look at other alternatives. 'I think the committee went down only one path.... and now you're talking about a 30-year bond on a building that's not going to even last 30 years.'

Williamson Supervisor Tom Wetherell stood, reminding Warnick that consultants had already said that the NYS Department of Health would not look favorably on creative financing alternatives. 'I think the study has been exacting... I stand squarely behind this approach... and I have no question as to its thoroughness or validity.'

The debate continued until finally, Decker called the question. Two supervisors voted 'no' - Fabino and Butler Supervisor Dave Spickerman. Fabino heads the board's Building & Grounds Committee, and Spickerman leads the Planning Committee.

The next resolution called for spending $1.8 million to begin the design, engineering and architectural process. No more discussion. Fabino and Spickerman voted 'no.'

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