LAWRENCE COUNTY Nursing home deal falls through

The controller said new marketing efforts for the county home are needed.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR NEW CASTLE BUREAU
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- Lawrence County commissioners formally agreed to extend the sale of the county nursing home another three months.
The deal fell through Monday after the buyer's bank asked that the county guarantee half of a $1.675 million loan.
"I said absolutely not," said Commissioner Roger DeCarbo Sr.
Commissioners, instead, agreed to give Sylvan Heights Realty Partners another 60 to 90 days to get the bank loan.
George Howley, one of the buyers, said they expect to get a financial audit of Hill View Manor and rework their bank financing. The $1.675 million price tag should not change, he said.
On Tuesday, commissioners talked about opening the sale of the nursing home to all potential buyers, but tabled the idea.
Suggestion
Controller Mary Ann Reiter also urged commissioners to put the nursing home back on the sales market and hire a new real estate agency.
"Put it in the hands of [an agency] with national connections," she said.
Castle Realty of New Castle is now handling the property and sale.
But DeCarbo and Commissioner Brian Burick said they wanted to give Sylvan Heights Realty Partners another chance to straighten out their financing.
"Sylvan Heights Realty Partners has a plan to renovate the building and they have a business plan. The only other option is we run it , and we don't have a business plan or the ability to run it properly," Burick said.
Disagreement
Commissioners disagreed over whether the nursing home has been losing money over the last several years.
Commissioner Ed Fosnaught, who has opposed the sale, contends the nursing home was not losing money when it was being operated by a professional management firm hired by the county in the late 1990s.
But Burick said it was being kept afloat by $800,000 loan made by a previous board of commissioners and that money has never been paid back to the county.
Burick also criticized the professional management company for not going after $1.1 million in Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements for patient care that the county later collected on its own.
DeCarbo said he's confident the buyers will get their bank loan and the sale will go through by Sept. 30.
The county is expected to net about $1.1 million from the sale after all fees are paid, he addedd.
cioffi@vindy.com