Monday’s meeting of the Monroe County Board featured a good audit review and good news about the Monroe County Jail expansion but uncertainty about the future of the Oak Hill senior living and rehabilitation center in Waterloo.

Jim Schmersahl of Schmersahl Treloar & Co. presented his findings of the recently completed audit of the county’s finances, offering a “clean opinion.”

This year’s audit was somewhat abnormal, as it is usually completed by the end of May; however, the Fick, Eggemeyer & Williamson accounting firm which had conducted recent county audits announced late last year it would not be performing the 2023 audit.

Schmersahl and his team began the most recent audit this April, using a 60-day extension to get the audit completed within schedule.

Schmersahl reported the audit was “filed on time” and “everything was in compliance” with state requirements.

Schmersahl credited county personnel in the Monroe County Treasurer’s Office, Monroe County Circuit Clerk’s Office, Monroe County Engineer Aaron Metzger and Oak Hill staff for a “very much textbook” auditing process.

The Oak Hill audit was especially challenging, Schmersahl noted, as the county-owned facility had recently hired a new finance director.

High points of the audit review included county general fund expenses being within 2 percent of budgeted amounts and county revenue being 6 percent above expectations.

In what Schmersahl described as a rarity, the county had to date received 99.78 percent of property taxes payable in 2023, a very high percentage when compared to other counties and taxing bodies.

One area of concern was the county’s position regarding pensions, as the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund would be slightly worse in the near future due to the way the investments funding pension liability are currently performing. 

Schmersahl said “once the pension fund rights itself, then you should be in decent shape.”

Monroe County Treasurer Kevin Koenigstein later told the Republic-Times the county pensions were fully funded in 2023, and the current trajectory of bond performance in relation to future pension funding is a minor concern at this time.   

Concerning Oak Hill, Schmersahl said overall revenue was up over $1 million from the previous year, although the facility’s net position fell $683,805 to end 2023 at $9,253,728.

He noted the final bond payment to pay off construction of the Oak Hill facility will be in 2025, after which the current Oak Hill tax levy will also expire. 

Commissioner Vicki Koerber asked what direction the county should go when the Oak Hill bond is paid off.

Schmersahl said that beyond the tax burden on county residents being reduced, Oak Hill becomes a matter of analyzing the cost of maintaining infrastructure and operations – which ultimately falls to commissioners to decide a course of action moving forward.

“Does the county want to be in the business of providing nursing home services, and what is the benefit to the residents and the cost to the residents?” Schmersahl asked. “The alternative, presumably, would be to sell the nursing home to some other third party.”

While Schmersahl said selling the nursing home would likely provide a “financial benefit to the county,” it would “also take out of the commissioners’ hands the ability to ensure services for the elderly in the county… which is a growing portion (of the county population).”

Also during the meeting, commissioners got welcome news from Monroe County Sheriff Neil Rohlfing and Monroe County Maintenance Director Joe Lewis.

Lewis reported that the Monroe County Jail expansion is nearly finished – two months ahead of schedule – and will be completed $5,800 under budget.

Lewis said the project will be handed over to the county on Aug. 13. After the interior is finished and furniture is in place, Lewis said he is planning an open house for the extension some time in September.

The news elicited a round of applause from commissioners.

Commissioner George Green said he was “impressed” by what he saw during multiple unscheduled visits during construction. 

Rohlfing credited Middendorf and Reuss Construction for its exceptional work.

Also during the meeting, Jim Dillenberger and Clyde Heller were on hand representing Discover Downstate Illinois, a tourism bureau which promotes Southern Illinois.

Heller and Dillenberger shared recent projects and thanked commissioners for their continued support of the organization.

The next meeting of the Monroe County Board will be Monday, Aug. 19, beginning at 8:15 a.m. at the Monroe County Courthouse.