Town hears renewed appeals as Island Nursing Home seeks funding and housing support

Representatives of the Island Nursing Home (INH) pressed the Stonington Selectmen for financial help and housing support in meetings across 2022 after the long-term care facility signaled it could not resume skilled nursing operations without external aid. At the Dec. 19 meeting the board recorded earlier presentations from INH representatives that described a continuing deficit and staffing shortages.

Skip Greenlaw, speaking for INH, told the board the facility could not operate without new revenue and said the organization was requesting $100,000 from towns to restart INH as a residential-care-only facility. The minutes record his description of an estimated $500,000 annual shortfall and concern that Medicare reimbursement rates would not cover operating costs.

The Town Manager, TM Billings, repeatedly advised the board that a town meeting petition would be required for any appropriation and asked INH to supply up-to-date financial figures before the Selectmen could consider placing an article on the warrant. Board members also questioned whether the budget numbers presented reflected recent inflationary pressures; the transcript shows INH representatives waffled on which fiscal year their figures reflected.

Selectman discussion focused on process rather than a commitment of funds. Officials urged INH to provide current audited or detailed financial statements and clarified that any direct town appropriation would need to appear as a specific warrant article and be approved by voters at a town meeting. The board accepted repeated offers from INH representatives to attend monthly meetings to supply updates but recorded no motion to authorize immediate spending.

Why it matters: The closure or reduced scope of INH affects local long-term care access on the peninsula and has broader implications for housing and workforce needs; board members tied any support decision to exact financial documentation and to whether housing solutions for staff could be secured.

Next steps: According to the minutes, INH representatives were asked to return with detailed, current financial information and a petition if they wished to place a funding request on a future town meeting warrant. No appropriation occurred during the meetings recorded in the transcript.

Sources and actions: The account above is drawn from Selectmen meeting minutes and includes the INH presentation recorded at SEG 004 (topic intro) through recurring references later in the transcript (topic finish SEG 019). The minutes record that the board discussed petition requirements and did not authorize town funding without a warrant article.