Early voting for Acadia -St. Landry Hospital millage starts Saturday

Early voting for the proposed Acadia-St. Landry Hospital Service District millage, which will be used to fund a new hospital facility, will begin this Saturday.
Acadia-St. Landry Hospital CEO Cindy Walters said, “We had a preliminary architectural feasibility study done in May 2018 to determine if it was financially feasible to remodel or replace the hospital.”
She continued, “That is kind of where this started because we were looking at our electrical panels to wire our CT scanner to the generator so that when we lost power, our CT machine would be wired and we would not have to go on CT diversion in a storm.
“At that time, when we did that, we realized we were maxing out our electrical panel, and that’s kind of where things started, where we were looking at technology, bringing in some new equipment and technology and could the facility sustain the new technology coming out.”
The proposed millage is a special ad valorem (property) tax of 10 mills on all the property subject to taxation in the Acadia-St. Landry Hospital Service District. That district includes some precincts in Acadia Parish Wards 6 and 7 and precincts in St. Landry Parish Ward 6, Precinct 2.
If approved, the new tax will begin this year and end in 2029. Funds generated will be “for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, improving, equipping, maintaining and/or operating new and existing hospital, health care and related facilities ... and recruiting physicians and other healthcare professionals.”
The new tax will be “in lieu of and replacing” the existing 7.64-mill proposition currently levied.
Early voting on the proposed millage will be from 8:30 a.m. until 6 p.m. in the Acadia Parish Registrar’s Office and the St. Landry Parish Registrar’s Office in Opelousas.
Early voting will end Aug. 8 and regular voting is scheduled for Aug. 15.
Walters announced the plan to build the new $30 million to $35 million facility last July at Church Point Community Development Board meeting.
In addition to funds generated by the proposed millage, the plan to cover the cost of the hospital also includes a $24 million U.S. Department of Agriculture loan; $5 million in new market tax credits; and a $2.12 million local bank loan.
The proposed site for the hospital is on La. 35, just south of the Church Point Wholesale facility. The 17-acre tract is already owned by the hospital.
The planned hospital will be double the size of the current facility, an increase from 35,000 square feet to 70,000 square feet.
The current hospital facility is 52 years old. The hospital is licensed for 30 beds, offering inpatient services, a swing-bed program, behavioral health program, diagnostics, six physicians on staff, respiratory and rehabilitation therapy, ground and air transport. The hospital is one of 27 critical access hospitals in the state.
Betty Bellard, wife of the late Dr. Ward Bellard, one of the first physicians at hospital’s current location, said it’s wonderful that the hospital has been kept going all these years.
“My husband was one of the hospital’s first four physicians, and they really saw the hospital through,” she said. “They all worked hard and on call to make sure someone was always available in the emergency room.”
Bellard said the hospital’s other three original physicians were Johnny W. Williams, Cliff Keller and John Bailey.
“Through the years, they worked together for the betterment of the hospital and community,” Bellard said.
Walters said she began tossing around the idea of a new hospital in February of last year.
“Technology was a big factor,” Walters said. “It’s constantly evolving, constantly changing, and we want to keep up with the times to be able to provide the services to the community that they deserve. This is their hospital.”
Walters and other staff members toured several critical access hospitals around the state that have been rebuilt using USDA loans and learned how CEOs of those facilities funded the new buildings.
A community survey was also conducted to gauge the public’s opinion on a possible millage. Four focus groups were hosted with individuals from Acadia and St. Landry parishes, the Church Point community and one with ASLH employees.
“The outcome of those focus groups is that they were very supportive, and it was indicative of what the community wants to see in a new facility, what they would support, what new services they wanted brought in,” Walters said.
Walters said the hospital’s pre-application for the USDA loan was approved on June 25, and the hospital’s full application is in the process of being completed. The soft deadline to have the application turned in is the end of September. An in-depth financial feasibility study and some preliminary architectural designs and plans will must also be submitted with the loan application.
Walters said the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the timeline of the phases leading the groundbreaking for the new facility, which was slated for this fall.
“The timeline is off by about eight to nine months,” Walters added.
Walters said the groundbreaking for the new facility may happen next spring.