Geary County Commissioners have approved an interlocal agreement dealing with an upcoming revenue bond issue for the hospital in Junction City.
Geary County plans to issue revenue bonds, in part to make repairs that will be needed for the current Geary Community Hospital facility. They are needed for the lease agreement under which Stormont Vail Health will assume oversight of the hospital on Jan. 1.
Alex Tyson, county commission chair, noted that the money will be used to fix up the building once the funds are received over a five-year period. Total amount to be spent for repairs and maintenance has been calculated at $20 million, including $1.7 million this year.
Those funds are all part of a planned $32 million revenue bond issue that will also include funding for existing hospital debt and operational money needed for Geary Community Hospital to make it through the remainder of this year to the Jan. 1 agreement with Stormont Vail Health.
The interlocal agreement will also include the Geary Community Hospital Trustees, Stormont Vail and the Geary County Public Building Commission. A special meeting is expected to be scheduled this week for the PBC to consider the agreement.
Property taxes currently used to support Geary Community Hospital will be reallocated to retire the revenue bond debt. There will not be any increase in property taxes.