LET ME EXPLAIN

By Noel Selle-Rea

The Wrangell Medical Center board and staff have chosen an approach of keeping communication between the City and Borough of Wrangell (CBW) and Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) direct and out of the media.  After the article in last week’s paper I felt it important that we provide some facts about the project.

As many of you know, WMC staff, WMC board and myself have all personally poured our heart and soul into this building project for the past several years. It is my hope and belief that we will get past the politics that a project like this can stir up – and move on with our task at hand to build a hospital and nursing home that the community deserves.

In May of 2008 I wrote a “let me explain” to the people of Wrangell.  In that letter I stated that it was the goal of the hospital board and staff to replace the hospital and nursing home and that the project would be developed without any taxes or other financial support of the CBW.   We have accomplished that goal.  The project as developed has no burden to the tax payers of our community.

Through a combination of grants and low interest loans, a state of the art hospital and nursing home can be constructed without sales or property tax revenue and any CBW support other than their generous donation of the property to build on. Payment of any debt is the responsibility of the Wrangell Medical Center. Our pro forma was developed using conservative estimates and was validated through an independent financial analysis, and subsequently by the USDA.

In 2009 Wrangell Medical Center secured four competitive proposals from nationally recognized companies that provide financial services for hospital construction projects.  A committee of WMC staff reviewed and scored these proposals and made a recommendation to the Wrangell Medical Center Board of Directors to hire Innovative Capital.  The board agreed with the staff recommendation and directed me to contract with Innovative Capital for their services. Innovative Capital then worked on behalf of the project over the next year and a half until the CBW took over the replacement hospital and nursing home project in January 2011.

From August of 2009 until January of 2011 Innovative Capital assisted WMC in securing the funding and loan opportunities to build the replacement hospital and nursing home.   Innovative Capital’s CEO traveled to Wrangell and met with Mayor McConachie, the new CBW manager and Representative Wilson in addition to the WMC board. Shortly thereafter, Alan Richman (Innovative Capital’s CEO), then Vice-Mayor Maxand, and I, traveled together as a team to Washington D.C. to personally meet with Senators Begich and Murkowski to give an update on the project and thank them for their support for the project.  

The City and Borough of Wrangell (CBW) set up a procedure to make sure Innovative Capital was paid for its work. The CBW required WMC to first pay Innovative Capital’s bill and then request reimbursement from the CBW. Any and all funds paid to Innovative Capital to date have followed the procedure established by the CBW and have been first paid by WMC then reviewed by the CBW, approved by the CBW, and reimbursed to WMC by the CBW. This process is in place as the CBW holds the grant from the State of Alaska.

It is abundantly clear that any allegation that these contracts were signed “in secret” or Innovative Capital’s work was done without any involvement with the CBW is simply untrue.  If there were flaws in the process or miscommunication, they are easily resolved.

To the extent any claim is being made that I acted “unilaterally,” the Wrangell Medical Center board reaffirmed their direction to administration to hire Innovative Capital at the October board meeting. Interestingly enough, as of Tuesday, October 25th, Innovative Capital has not been served with legal notice that they are included in the CBW’s lawsuit. Wrangell Medical Center is the only party that has been served notice and Wrangell Medical Center is the only party generating legal expenses to defend themselves in the CBW’s civil court case.

This issue is remarkably similar to the CBW decision to transfer 29 acres of CBW owned land to Wrangell Medical Center for the construction of the new medical campus.  Assembly members unanimously approved this transfer even though CBW charter prohibits Wrangell Medical Center from owning real property.  Their mistake was eventually corrected with little ado.  The point here is not to condemn or embarrass the assembly but rather to point out that this project is the largest project developed in Wrangell’s history and there will be times when an issue will need to be revisited and corrected. Whether it was the assembly or the WMC board, they are all well intentioned and trying to serve the community that elected them.

The Wrangell Medical Center board and their administration has repeatedly offered to meet directly with the assembly to discuss and work through any and all issues.  We feel that the solutions will come from direct honest communication, not through attorneys and needless litigation. The citizens of Wrangell need and deserve a new hospital and long-term care facility. Both the WMC Board and WMC administration are ready to “move forward” and get this hospital and nursing home project completed.

Regardless of your position, please go out and vote on November 15.