Seeking common ground

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
Commissioner Tony Barton was adamant at the Feb. 20 Weston County Health Services board meeting that while the sale of the land adjacent to the hospital is a contentious issue for the Weston County Board of Commissioners, he hopes the two county entities can come together to make a deal. 
The parcel of land deeded to the Weston County Hospital District in 2005 by the County became a topic of discussion on Jan. 7 when County Attorney Alex Berger approached the commissioners about releasing the right of reverter (a clause included in a deed that makes possessory interest automatically revert back to the grantor or devisor if, and only if, a specific condition happens) on the property. He explained that the hospital was requesting the release because of the potential sale of the property to an unnamed retail business. 
According to the hospital’s attorney, Jim Peck, when the county conveyed the land to the hospital in 2005, the same deed was used for the land that the hospital is currently sitting on. He said that the right of reverter was included because there was a question in 1999 as to whether or not the hospital district would be successful or dissolve. 
According to Peck, at this point, in his opinion, if the county doesn’t want to sell the property, then the land stays with the hospital district. He said that neither the county nor the hospital district had money invested in the land. 
Barton agreed that, according to records, it would seem that the concern in 1999 was that the district would dissolve and that within the minutes that conveyed the land to the hospital district in 2005, there was nothing stated about a right of reverter. 
“I think there is some misinformation, and once you dive in, it doesn’t necessarily look like what we (the commissioners) thought it did,” Barton said. 
He suggested that he could propose a
50-50 split on the proceeds from the sale to the commissioners. 
“I’m not sure I want to go 50-50. I don’t think the reversion was talked about back then, that I recall, and I am not ready to say, ‘Give it back to the county,’” Mike Ratigan, a hospital trustee, said. “I think we go 75-25. I feel the commissioners are being a little greedy.”  
Barton said that he wanted to come up with a deal that might bring the interested business to town. 
“We are on the same team,” Barton said. 
Hospital board trustee Ashley Tupper said that the money from the sale, if it were to stay with the hospital district, would go to better serve the community. She said that if there is a standstill, no one in the county would benefit. 
“I think we throw out 75-25 and see where it goes,” trustee Lanny Reimer said. 
Barton said that he would approach his fellow commissioners with the proposal and that he was not against a split that favored the hospital district. The district has never been funded by anyone but the citizens, and this money would go directly toward helping better serve those same citizens, he said.