Polk County puts Rohr Home on the market for $5.4 million

BARTOW — On a 4-1 vote, Polk County commissioners have officially put the Rohr Home in Bartow up for sale.

Commissioners voted to put the county-operated nursing home on the market with a minimum bid set at $5.4 million. Only those that have successfully operated a nursing home within the last two years are eligible to bid.

County Manager Bill Beasley told commissioners the value of the property was assessed at $6.3 million, including furniture and equipment.

Commissioners Bill Braswell, Neil Combee, George Lindsey and Martha Santiago voted in favor of the public sale on Tuesday. Only Rick Wilson voted against the motion.

"When this initially came up and basically when COVID started and you know the times that all the nursing homes went through then, and the count went down, and I knew that this was going to be a tough deal for the Rohr Home, for the county to maintain and stay in the business," Wilson said. "It's a very special thing. I've had a lot of good friends go through there over the years and hate to see it go."

Previously: Polk discusses future of struggling county-owned nursing home

'Shouldn't they fit in?': Polk commissioners deny 242-unit subdivision in rural Kathleen

The nursing home at 2120 Marshall Edwards Drive is approximately 24,600 square feet. It has 60 beds, half of which are currently occupied, and has been owned and operated by the county since 2003. There is no commercial kitchen on the property.

Beasley told commissioners that when the county first floated the idea of soliciting buyers, four companies expressed interest in acquiring or leasing the property.

Usually, when a property is declared surplus and put up for sale, there is an existing mechanism that allows the minimum bid price to lower over time if the bid is not met. But in the case of the Rohr Home, if the minimum bid is not met, the decision on what to do next will be brought back before county commissioners, according to Tuesday's board meeting.

"I think we don't necessarily want to go with the lowest bid," Director of Health and Human Services Marcia Andreson said. "We want to make sure it's going to somebody who's got experience and I think we recognize the value of the property and of the nursing home."

While the buyer will need to have experience operating a nursing home facility, the county cannot require that the Rohr Home continue to be used in that manner, Beasley told commissioners.

"In terms of stressing that it must stay in that condition or that model for some period of time, we are on a slippery slope," Beasley said.

Andreson said the county hopes the new operator will choose to stay in the nursing home business and retain existing residents and staff.

"We hope a qualified person or organization is available to come in and take over and that they would provide a similar environment or a better environment where they can pay staff a higher wage," Andreson said.

If the buyer does not wish to continue the nursing home operations, county staff will work to find current residents an alternative location "that they would be happy with," Andreson said. They would also try to find the existing 38 employees other work within the county.

Development: Polk commissioners to consider 242-home subdivision in rural Kathleen

Healthcare facility coming? New 'micro hospital' could soon be heading to South Florida Avenue

Did you know? Haines City mayor wants to return oversight of city clerk to city manager's office

Home has been struggling for years

Commissioners started discussing what to do with the Rohr Home earlier this year, with Beasley telling commissioners in February that the county would need to start dipping into its general budget in the form of a subsidy to keep it open. In recent years, the facility has struggled to bring in new residents and retain employees and therefore operates in a deficit, according to past Ledger reporting.

On top of staffing shortages facing the entire healthcare industry, the county has been unable to compete with wages and sign-on bonuses offered at local nursing homes.

At that February meeting, Beasley said COVID-19 "has been enormously challenging for the staff and the residents." He said enrollment numbers were down and there was little optimism for growth.

The Rorh Home has hovered at about 30 residents since February, Andreson said. In order for the home to at least break even, there would have to be at least 52 residents.

"Pre-COVID I'll say we were probably closer to 52ish, 55 [residents]," Andreson said. "And then post-COVID, we just haven't been able to regain that number."

In February, commissioners directed Beasley to pursue selling the home rather than closing it or subsidizing it. The county does have to fund the home's operation until a sale is complete.

Wilson wanted commissioners to hold out for a brighter future.

"I’ve said from day one, I’m not for selling it. I would love to see us give it a little bit more time," Wilson said. "I know time is money. There’s no doubt about it."

But his fellow board members were ready to move on. Combee said it's likely the Rohr Home could be restored with "the right kind of marketing and the right kind of improvements."

"In reality, this is one of those things we don't need to be doing. I don't know how we ever started doing it in the first place," Combee said. "I think we'll all be better off if we find a buyer who is in this business and maybe has more than one of these and can find a way to bring it back up to where it was in the glory days."

Maya Lora can be reached with tips or questions at mlora@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @mayaklora. 

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Polk wants to sell its nursing home facility for $5.4 million