Dear Editor: I would like to comment on the article in last week’s paper regarding Access II purchasing the building in the business park.Access II started operation in the early 90's and its office was located in the courthouse, which was provided rent and utilities free. The office next moved to the old PJ’s restaurant building located on South Main. When the Lincoln Health Care Group rented the Daviess County Nursing Home, they also purchased the Sunrise Nursing Home. Access II moved to their present location at 611 W. Johnson, and paid approximately $2,400 per month rent.
In 2005, the Lincoln Health Care Group donated this building to Daviess County. The county then leased the building to Access II for $100 per month. The reason for the reduced rent amount was so that Access II could spend their money for services to the people they serve.
The Access II minutes reflect that in February, 2010, they were already looking about purchasing the building in the business park.
In June, the Access II administrator, Heather Swymeler, notified the Daviess County commission of water getting into the basement area of the building. The commission inspected the situation immediately, met with Access II board, assuring them that this situation would be fixed.
The commission hired Apex Environmental Company to take air quality samples and develop a scope of work so mold removal in the basement could be bid. The air quality samples taken by Apex showed the quality of the air where Access II is located was better than the air quality outdoors.
After the mold is removed, Apex will take more samples and will certify that the building is mold-free. We notified Heather Swymeler of this on July 6. At that time, she said the Access II board felt they needed more space. The commission told her that they could rent the basement also for a small additional fee. This would almost double the floor space to more than 9,000 square feet. They would also be offered a 15 to 20 year lease.
Heather also stated that Access II receives minimal state funding. According to State Representative Casey Guernsey, Access II receives 50% of the funding directly from a state grant and most of the rest of their funding comes from state medicaid.
The question I want to ask the Access II board is, how they were able to put away $450,000 to buy a building and is it wise to spend $375,000 on a building that will require a large sum spent on renovations? They could have leased the entire building where they are located for $200 per month and had almost twice the floor space of the new building.
In today’s economy, the Federal and State governments are slashing programs. Wouldn’t it have been more prudent for the Access II board to have saved the $375,000 and used those funds to help the people stay in their own homes?
I wish Access II the best of luck in their new building, but I felt the public needed to know how our tax dollars are being spent.
Danny Heldenbrand, Daviess County Commissioner
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