Closing of loan fund is boon for Lasata

More than $1 million of improvements will be made at the Lasata Senior Living Campus in Cedarburg with the closing of Ozaukee County’s revolving loan program, which for years has been used to help businesses start or expand.

The federal governments decided to get out of the program in 2019, leading to the state giving counties and municipalities the option of continuing the program on their own or also getting out.

The option chosen by the county was to access the program’s cash on hand — totalling $845,452 —as a grant, and purchase the outstanding loan balance of $276,332 from the state and manage the outstanding loans itself.  

That makes more than $1.21 million available to the county, which can only be used to benefit low-income residents, seniors, the disabled and other groups.

The county Health and Human Services Committee approved a plan on Jan. 26 to spend more than $1 million to make several improvements at Lasata Heights, including renovating 24 apartments for independent seniors, replacing carpeting in common areas, upgrading interior lighting and repairing inoperable fireplaces.

In addition, the Lasata Crossing assisted living facility’s warming kitchen will be upgraded to a commercial kitchen,  Lasata Care Center nursing home’s boiler will be improved and the exterior lighting at the campus will be improved.

Another $108,000 is earmarked for remodeling the men’s and women’s bathrooms, kitchen and health rooms at HH Peters Youth Camp and Hawthorne Hills Golf Course clubhouse so they comply with the American Disabilities Act.

“This is a great opportunity for us,” committee Chairman Kathy Geracie said. “There have been so many projects all waiting to get done that we just didn’t have the money for.”

The county must spend the funds within two years.

Now that the county is administering the $276,332 in business loans, the risk exists that the county would have to pay for the improvements at Lasata from its own funds, rather than proceeds from loan payments, if loan recipients defaulted.

County officials had envisioned using the money to build a community-based residential facility at Lasata to serve those with dementia, developmental disabilities or mental health problems.

But because the federal government is the source of the revolving loan funds, the county is obligated to pay prevailing wages and use materials made in America, which would drastically increase the cost of a proposed CBRF.