County Home looking to increase first-floor living quarters

The Holmes County Home continues to work toward creating living space that is desirable and purposeful for its residents.

In meeting with the Holmes County commissioners on Monday, July 29 at the Old Jail meeting room in Millersburg, Holmes County Home Director Deb Miller said upcoming improvements on the facility will include work on the first floor of the building, where they expect to widen several of the doors to better accommodate wider wheelchair access, as well as creating some new first-floor rooms, especially for the women who need more assistance, which is a growing concern.

“Our downstairs rooms have become an issue because most of the people on our wait list need a little more assistance,” Miller said, at the same time encouraging any family considering putting a loved one into the home to stop by for a tour.

“As for the doorways, it’s an older building, and over the years, medical equipment has gotten larger and bulkier, so we are looking to have a couple doorways widened. We are going to start that soon because there is a specific situation where that need came up, so we will be looking to do that soon.”

The Holmes County Home is currently home for 34 residents, a number that has inched up to its highest for some time. New additional living space could lead to an increase in that number.

Miller said the Holmes County Home Auxiliary continues to shine in its support of the home. She said the group has renovated the upstairs restroom facilities and added on to the outdoor pavilion.

“That addition will help with the auction but will make it more feasible for families and residents to use that area,” Miller said.

She also said talks continue about a possible living quarters addition, a discussion that began pre-COVID. She said that is in preliminary stages, and the cost would be an estimated $500,000.

“It would give us more beds, and I anticipate that the need is not going to go away,” Miller said.

Miller said the second floor is for residents who are more independent, but eventually, they decline in health and require more assistance, making the need for more first-floor rooms a necessity.

Addressing the Holmes County Home levy that will be on the November ballot, Miller said a lot of discussion went into a possible increase to the renewal levy, but they decided to simply go back on the ballot with the recurring renewal levy.

“That (increase) is going to be a need in the future, but because of the large carryover we had this year, we decided it was best not to ask for anything additional right now, so we will continue to work with what we have and do our best to be financially conscious with those dollars,” Miller said.

As for the Holmes County Homes current budget and expenses report, Miller said expenses are at 50% of the estimate for the year, which is right on par. She said last year’s expenses were at 42% at this time, with the difference being an increase in salaries, which she said was a good thing. She also said insurance increases and supplies are both up compared to last year, and the generator being put in place also added to the expense sheet this year.

She said board and care income is up $44,000 while the overall revenue is up $71,000 over last year.

“We are using a new medical supply company to try to keep costs down as much as we can, and it’s mostly for medical supplies,” Miller said. “We continue to try to find ways to pinch dollars and are exploring every avenue when it comes to Medicare and Medicaid. Our goal is to make things the most affordable for our residents.”

Miller said they are already working with the auxiliary to prepare for the upcoming Holmes County Home Auction on Sept. 21. She also said they will host the upcoming Family Picnic Day on Aug. 10 in the pavilion, where they will fellowship with residents, their families and other guests.