What happened?
The Madera County Board of Supervisors approved continued payments of $125,000 per week to cover operating costs for the shuttered hospital through March 23 and moved forward an amended agreement for an environmental impact report for the Liberty Groves 1,320-acre development outside Madera Ranchos.
At their Tuesday meeting, the Madera County supervisors approved continued weekly payments to cover the operating costs of the shuttered Madera Community Hospital through March 23 to allow more time for bankruptcy court proceedings.
The hospital’s board announced last month that it reached a deal with a Modesto-based company, American Advanced Management, Inc., to reopen and operate the facility, but that a transitional plan was pending court approval.
The item included on the agenda was to approve weekly payments of $125,000 through March 1, but Chief Administrative Officer Jay Varney said that individuals involved with the reopening of the hospital asked the board to consider approving payments through March 23 instead, in an amount not exceed $1 million.
“Based on the bankruptcy and the hearing dates, they have some important hearings for the bankruptcy in the first few weeks of March and they would like to include this information in their filing, as staff believes it will help the plan come to fruition much more likely,” he said.
Varney said three conditions must be met for the continued funding, including that it only be used to preserve the license and the hospital as a going concern and not used to pay general claims against the estate, such as bankruptcy fees.
Additionally, he said the county has received communication from MCH representatives that the funds will ensure that the facility is kept at its current operating condition.
Varney said MCH has not yet received funding through the Distressed Hospital Loan Program (DHLP), but that the county’s weekly operating cost assistance will stop once MCH receives the DHLP Bridge Loan.
Liberty Groves development moves forward
Among the items on its consent calendar, the board approved an amended agreement for the preparation of an environmental impact report (EIR) for the Liberty Groves 1,320-acre mixed-use expansion area of the Madera Ranchos.
The agreement enables Liberty Groves, LLC to enter into an increased $503,431 contract with ECORP Consulting, Inc. to complete the final EIR needed to move forward with the development slated to include zoning for residential, commercial, office/light industrial and recreational uses.
According to the agenda packet, the plan includes 5,384 dwelling units in neighborhoods of varying densities within two primary planning areas: Liberty Groves and Silverdust at Liberty Groves.
Liberty Groves will be located west of Liberty High School along Avenue 12, adjacent to existing development in Madera Ranchos.
The board first approved an agreement for the EIR preparation by ECORP Consulting, Inc. for $447,913 in 2021, but approved an additional $55,518 to continue with the EIR for the Liberty Groves specific plan and area plan.
The agenda states that Liberty Groves, LLC, the applicant for the project and owners of the parcels involved in the process, are responsible for bearing the cost to fully fund the EIR process being conducted by Benchmark Resources and ECORP Consulting, Inc. in addition to a 20% administrative fee for county project administration.
The Madera County Board of Supervisors will meet again Feb. 6
