McKay Healthcare eyes $26.8M expansion to create a 'CCRC'

 SOAP LAKE —Grant County Public Hospital District No. 4, which operates McKay Healthcare and Rehabilitation in Soap Lake, is moving forward with plans to expand its facility and services to create a “Continuing Care Retirement Community” that will serve rural central Washington.  

“Unlike in Seattle or Spokane, families in our region currently don’t have access to this model of care,” the district says in a project overview. “A CCRC allows seniors to stay in one place as their needs change, moving from independent living to assisted living, memory care, or skilled nursing without leaving their community. This approach helps reduce isolation, improves quality of life, and ensures families can stay close together.”

The initial phase of expansion envisions a $26.8 million project that would add new assisted living and memory care facilities and a community wellness center on McKay’s 22-acre campus.

Funding estimated at $16.8 million would potentially come from a mix of state and federal grants and a low-interest loan, local charitable foundations, Grant County’s Strategic Infrastructure Program, and other donors. Voters within the hospital district will also be asked to support a 25-year, $9.94 million bond proposition. The district’s boundaries include the greater Soap Lake area eastward to Wilson Creek and north to Coulee City.

The district’s board of directors — P.J. Anderson, Barbara Carlson, Kim Randolph-Meaney, Cindi Rang, and Steve Wellein —unanimously adopted a resolution Tuesday to place the bond proposal on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.

“It’s a challenge, but we’re hopeful the community will support us,” Cliff Sears, the district’s legal counsel and project manager, said on Wednesday. “We hope they realize it would be a resource for us, allowing family members to remain together while caring for mom or dad.”

McKay was first established in the late 1930s as a hospital, but now serves as a 42-bed skilled nursing and long-term care facility with physical, occupational, and speech therapy services also available. It is one of Soap Lake’s biggest employers, with 57 employees including registered and enrolled nurses.

Economic benefits of the initiative are estimated at $4.85 million annually to the local area, Sears said during a facility tour last month with Grant County commissioners Kevin Burgess and Cindy Carter. Also participating were McKay administrator Audra Gutierrez and Rang, who chairs the hospital board.

Sears pointed to a research paper issued in April by the Grant County Economic Development Council. Among its findings, the GCEDC said McKay’s plans could:

—    Create an estimated 160 construction jobs at prevailing wages in the first phase, which calls for 16 assisted living units and an equal number of memory care units plus the community center;

—    Add nearly 29 permanent fulltime equivalent employees in its first phase, boosting McKay’s work force to over 85 FTEs. Projected annual payroll for the new staffing would total over $1.8 million;

—    Provide a stronger local healthcare network to meet community needs while improving health outcomes at lower costs and keeping families together;

—    Adding a community clubhouse would promote social interaction among seniors and provide meeting and event space for the public;

—    Offer workforce training and possible student employment opportunities due to its proximity to nearby Soap Lake High School.

As proposed, the measure would increase the hospital district’s current property tax levy rate by 67 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation. For the owner of a $300,000 home, that translates to an additional annual tax of $200, or just under $17 a month.

Passing the bond measure will require a 60% majority vote. It’s viewed as a key community commitment to garner additional federal, state, and local funding. If all the parts “mesh together,” said Sears, construction could start in the fall of 2027 and be completed in an 18-month window.

During a visit to Moses Lake last week, Congressman Dan Newhouse, who represents central Washington’s 4^th District and sits on the House Appropriations Committee, confirmed he has submitted a funding request for the McKay project.

Sears acknowledged local officials are mindful that nearby Ephrata-area voters recently rejected bond proposals sought by Columbia Basin Hospital and the Ephrata School District. But both proposals were fully dependent on bond monies with levy rate increases that topped $1.

“We decided we can’t go that high,” he said. “Our neighbors both failed. So we backed it down as low as we thought we could go and still have assurance the amount would be enough to get grants.” 

Sears noted that significant preparation progress has already been made —survey and planning studies and about 90% of the architectural design have been completed.

The district has also obtained funding for improvements to the existing facility without tapping taxpayers. In the past four years, nearly $1.8 million has gone toward new wiring and an emergency generator, a new roof, bathroom renovations, exterior painting, an improved outdoor area for residents, new “smart” televisions with individual headsets, a new transport van, kitchen and laundry upgrades, and more.

Contributors to those projects include the BNSF Railway Foundation, Columbia Basin Foundation and the annual “Gathered in Gratitude” event, Confluence Health Community partnership grant, Ephrata Rotary Club, Grant County and its Strategic Infrastructure Program, McKay Foundation, Microsoft, the Paul Lauzier Charitable Foundation, and other private donations.

“The community has traditionally been supportive,” said Rang.

McKay’s development of a “senior living community” would later add duplexes and residences, providing transitional “aging in place" accommodations for couples with different levels of needed care.

The initiative can be a “vitally important” asset in providing health, social, and economic benefits locally and in the region, says Corinne Isaak, executive director of the Columbia Basin Foundation, which is supporting the project.

Increasingly, long-established rural families are moving out of the area to be near loved ones who need enhanced elder care provided in larger cities, she said. “They’re going to Wenatchee or Spokane, rather than staying here. And they’re supporting organizations in those communities, not ours.”

But citizens can be part of a project that “allows our seniors a place to move close to home when their healthcare needs necessitate it, plus this senior living community will create a regional asset … " Isaak said. "If we all give a little, we can gain a lot. Team McKay says VOTE YES, and we will do the rest.”