By Jill Terreri
LOCKPORT — The Niagara County Legislature is making plans to move forward with a lawsuit against the state regarding a commission’s recommendation to close Mount View Health Facility.
A group of lawmakers on Tuesday unanimously agreed to fight in court a plan to close Mount View and in its place build a new assisted living facility.
The county views the recommendation from the Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century as a “taking” of the property and officials say since the county had a purchase deal for the property with a private buyer for $2.4 million, litigation is warranted.
The concern isn’t just over the lost revenue from the sale.
If the recommendation, which calls for a closure of Mount View as a 172-bed long-term care facility, is carried out, the county would be saddled with the construction and operation of a new assisted living facility. If the county elects to seek a private operator for those beds, the county’s lawyers fear that state and federal funding for facilities undergoing a transition will be jeopardized.
Assistant County Attorney Michael Fitzgerald said a lawsuit must be filed before Dec. 31, when the recommendations become law, barring any action by the state Legislature before that time. If the county waits until next year, they could be viewed as “acquiescing” to the recommendations, he said.
“We think we have a good lawsuit,” Fitzgerald said. “If you don’t bring a suit, you’ve acquiesced to the recommendation.”
County Manager Gregory Lewis said he supports the action.
In the 2007 Mount View budget, $60,000 is budgeted for legal services. The county has a contract with Damon and Morey to handle legal issues related to Mount View.
Mount View is home to about 138 residents and employs about 200 full- and part-time people.
If the nursing home is replaced with an assisted living facility, only about 25 percent of the current staff will be needed, mostly housekeeping and dietary workers and not many nurses, said Mount View Administrator Patricia Weeks O’Connor.
Other questions about the recommendations remain.
O’Connor questioned the commission’s recommendation that a 50-slot adult day health program be added to the new assisted living facility because current state regulations allow adult day programs only in facilities that also provide nursing home care.
A final approval is required from the full Legislature on Tuesday.
Contact Jill Terreri at 282-2311, Ext. 2250.
