Letter: Reasons for YES

Among items some of you will be asked to vote on April 3 is the referendum question: “Should St. Croix County continue to operate the St. Croix County Nursing Home in New Richmond if property tax dollars are needed to partially fund its operation?”

Just how much will that partial levy support be? About 1.2% of $27,847,925.00, or $333,002.00 for the current budget year.

The Nursing Home’s draw on the levy in 2008, when a similar referendum question was on the ballot, was about $793,090.00.

At that time citizens in every single one of our county’s 40 reporting units voted — by no less than a 2-1 margin — to continue supporting with property tax dollars our 5-star rated nursing home facility.

The most recently projected levy draw ($333,002.00) needed to partially support our county-run nursing home, will be less than half of what it was in 2008.

In out-of-pocket dollars, try this: Divide the $333,002.00 by 46,411 (the number of real estate tax parcels that pay into the county levy); next, divide that quotient by 58 (the average resident census in our nursing home during the month of February, 2012); finally, divide that quotient by 365 days.

This amount, then — $0.0003389 — is an approximation of what it will cost each of us to care for one nursing home resident per day during the current fiscal year.

Is it asking too much to make that kind of sacrifice to help those in our nursing home who are no longer able to help themselves?

If we factor in the 202 jobs and attendant economic impact of $12,000,000 associated with the county nursing home’s operation, it seems to make unequivocal sense to keep that facility open. Vote YES.

Tags: opinion, letters, politics