MONTICELLO – Speaker after speaker told a second public hearing into the Sullivan County Legislature’s proposal to sell the Care Center at Sunset Lake in Liberty that the county should not privatize the nursing home.
What was expected to be a vote on the sale following the public comments, was put off as Legislature Chairman Robert Doherty announced at the onset of the hearing that there would be no vote.
Speakers included nurses, aides and office personnel, current or retired, and many told stories about the care and compassion afforded to the residents of the facility.
One speaker, Daryl Crokin, said he was “embarrassed” for the lawmakers for not doing their homework.
“Don’t pull this sh**. Don’t pull it in this county. Don’t mess with the residents, with the people who have jobs who just went through a pandemic to save lives. I am so embarrassed for you,” he said.
As the hearing continued, it became apparent that the legislature might not have votes sufficient to start the sale process.
The county says the nursing home is bleeding money and selling it to a private firm could make the difference between raising taxes and laying off employees.
But, many of the speakers said the county officials did not perform due diligence.
Legislature Chairman Robert Doherty said the county is in tough fiscal shape.
“Our financial situation is pretty dire. I want you all to understand that. It’s not just widgets to us; it’s people to us and we understand that,” he said.
Some four years ago, Orange County considered selling its Valley View nursing home in Goshen, but its finances were turned around and remains in county hands.
Doherty and former Sullivan chairman Luis Alvarez plan to meet with Orange County officials on Friday to learn how their neighboring county turned Valley View around.
