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Tom Barb, chief executive of Hernando Healthcare Inc., is scheduled to present the Board of County Commissioners with the deed for Brooksville Regional Hospital at its regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday. This deed presentation is for the new hospital on State Road 50.
Before anyone gets too emotional over this most gracious gift to the county, please stop and think about the long-term impacts (of this gift). This "deal" to turn over the deed was brokered by Barb and the county commissioners before the new hospital project began several years ago. With the deed transfer to Hernando County taxpayers, Brooksville Regional's lease will be increased to a 40-year term, with an increase of $500,000 per year in (lease) payments to the county.
With this presentation of the deed to the county, the new hospital will never have to pay ad valorem taxes for property. This new hospital was estimated to cost $53-million, which would reap approximately $970,800 per year in property taxes if left on the tax rolls. Please do not forget that Hernando Healthcare Inc. does not pay ad valorem taxes for Spring Hill Regional Hospital or the Pine Brook medical facility either.
As the new hospital's property value increases over the next 40 years, Hernando Healthcare will pay the same lease payment, with no increases to its company, while it pockets the profits for the stockholders of this for-profit corporation. This deed-deal brokered by our County Commission and Hernando Healthcare should be strictly scrutinized before accepting the transfer Tuesday.
Consideration needs to be given to all business and residential properties that pay ad valorem property tax in this county and any long-term impacts this transfer may have on us as taxpayers in this community for the next 40 years.
Maybe it's time the commission gets out of the hospital business and sticks with the business of running government.
The Hernando County Board of Commissioners soon will replace the departing county administrator. Full value from services of the next administrator, however, will be obtained only if the commissioners provide for him or her a wholesome working environment.
Micromanaging of the staff by commissioners undermines an administrator's authority. Staff members become confused as to from whom to accept direction and to whom they are responsible. Morale declines. Thereby, quantity and quality of work for production of community services suffers.
Further, some decisions of the board are influenced by the vested interests from whom commissioners accept financial and other support when seeking re-election. In reality, the board is a country club where representatives of these interests are paid by taxpayers to be members of it. Moreover, the board is being used for on-the-job training by some commissioners with aspirations for Tallahassee, and maybe beyond, as well as being a haven for those no longer wanted there.
Again, the board has discouraged, if not thwarted, the administrator's efforts to bring county government organization into the 21st century. Tasks no longer productive need eliminating and others redesigned for less use of scarce resources.
Never before in the glorious history of Hernando has the need been greater for charter government. Such government has several main advantages. Commissioners, for example, who fail to fulfill their obligations to the community can, by popular vote, be recalled promptly from office.
Now is Hernando's future.