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LAUREL – The Laurel City Council put another $400,000 into its city-owned nursing home and then effectuated its closing at two meetings over the past week.
At a special council meeting last week, the council voted to extend the city’s line of credit for Hillcrest for an additional $400,000.
City Administrator Dan Kuhlman said last week the money is allocated for continued payroll payments including paid time off payments, administrator wages and accounts payable.
The city council borrowed another $180,000 in February to cover payroll, on top of an existing $500,000 line of credit that was extended.
How we got here
After months of public turmoil, the council voted to close the city-owned Hillcrest Care Center, impacting 50 employees and 20 residents who resided in skilled nursing and assisted living. The facility was licensed for 36 nursing home residents and seven assisted living residents.
The city attempted to raise extra funds for the facility in May 2024 when it put a proposal for a one-cent sales tax on the ballot. Voters rejected that idea, however.
In January, Hillcrest staff brought concerns about the facility’s financial woes to the public, sharing that bills were going unpaid.
Former Hillcrest administrator Megan Wieck made decisions about which vendors got paid. As a result of non-payment, many vendors stopped doing business with the facility including staffing agencies and supply companies.
Staff said they brought their concerns of financial instability and administrative mismanagement to light about two years ago to the seven-member nursing home advisory board. After the board started questioning the facility administrator, the council and mayor, the nursing home board was dissolved in May 2024. In its place, the mayor and city council were tasked with overseeing the center’s operations, governance and administration.
The city courted a potential buyer of the nursing home earlier this year but the company ultimately did not follow through with the purchase. The city severed Wieck’s employment March 10.
Monday’s meeting
At its regular meeting Monday night, the city council voted unanimously to effectuate Hillcrest’s closing.
The city will be attempting to sell the license for its 36bed facility to a community outside a 25-mile radius of Laurel, per Department of Health and Human Services regulations. That agreement could be in place as early as next week.
However, in a statement after the council vote, Mayor Keith Knudsen said the move opens the door for any other entity or non-profit to apply for a skilled nursing license in Laurel without requiring a Certificate of Need. A Certificate of Need is a regulatory mechanism to ensure new healthcare facilities and services are needed within a community.
“It’s basically perpetual as I understand that anytime in the future, if a political subdivision or a non-profit, whether it’s in this community or another, can apply for that license and not have to go through that certificate of need,” Knudsen said after the meeting.
About a dozen people attended Monday night’s meeting - nearly all a part of a community group that aimed at keeping Hillcrest Care Center open.
When the city council voted to close the facility last month, the group switched its mission to start a new non-profit, Cedar Haven of Laurel, in the hopes of taking over the Hillcrest facility under the new name.
The group raised $280,450 in pledges for the cause - far less than their goal to raise $500,000 and knowingly needing much more to open and sustain the skilled nursing facility for its first few months.
Even though they fell short of the goal, there’s much to be proud of - standing up for what’s right and advocating for Hillcrest’s residents who were forced to leave their home, said Wendi Krie, a former Hillcrest nurse.
“It is very sad. They fought so hard. Quite a few spent so much time and the money they (pledged), they know they did the right thing. They really tried,” she said.
At the last Cedar Haven of Laurel group meeting last week, no consensus was reached about how to proceed or if it was feasible to continue, said Alesia Barker, Laurel. No group meetings have been scheduled.
At the meeting Monday, the council also authorized Kuhlman to terminate employment of remaining Hillcrest Care Center employees, and approved a consulting agreement with Lantern Health Services to include Hillcrest Care Center Interim Administrator Sharon Colling, and with Helping Hands Nursing Solutions Inc. to include Hillcrest’s interim Director of Nursing. Colling and Kuhlman were also authorized as signors for Hillcrest’s bank accounts.
During the 20-minute council meeting, the council also unanimously approved extending the loan for the community center and city office.
“The note’s due now and we’re looking to extend it for two years, for budgeting purposes it would be nice to extend that to 2027,” Kuhlman said.
The council also approved a resolution to call electric revenue refunding bonds, and approve an agreement with Western Area Power Administration and Nebraska Public Power District for Laurel’s Firm Electric Service contract.
The council also approved building permits and Knudsen read a proclamation for Arbor Day.
