Ridgefield’s over-65 population is projected to exceed its school enrollment by about 2017. To care for that graying population’s medical needs, the Ridgefield Visiting Nurse Association plans to grow.
“We’re living longer, there’s no secret there,” said Theresa Santoro, director of the association. “The aging population — there’ll be more of us growing older. Chronic disease is on the rise. The Centers for Disease Control says one out of two adults will be managing chronic disease…
“The bottom line is we need to be ready to serve the growing population who will be needing health care services,” Ms. Santoro said.
The change is something the Ridgefield Visiting Nurse Association, “RVNA,” is already starting to feel.
“Over the last five years the number of homecare patients we serve has doubled, and the number just continues to climb,” she said.
The organization, which turns 100 next year, wants to expand and renovate its space at the town’s Venus Municipal building — the “old high school” — on East Ridge. To do that, it is asking the town for a long-term renewal of its lease, with expansion into some of the adjoining areas of the building.
First Selectman Rudy Marconi said the town is working with the organization to try to accommodate the plans.
“They want to add 4,000 square feet onto the south facade facing the police station,” Mr. Marconi said.
The addition would be two floors, with a footprint of about 2,000 square feet.
“And then the plan currently is to remodel the current space they lease and to increase it by taking over all other available space in that area — it would be the basement and second floor, they would take over 100%.”
Some smaller tenants would have be relocated, including Kumon Math, Loosen Up Massage Therapy, MCCA, the Youth Service Bureau, Ridgefield Adult Education, the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
“I’ve spoken with everybody,” Mr. Marconi said.
He is hoping to find or help find new quarters for the organizations.
“The VNA’s desire is to lease the entirety of three floors where they’re located now, the basement level, the first floor level, which they currently have, and all of the second level, of which they have a piece already.
“If that in fact is what the Board of Selectmen agrees to do, which seems to be the direction we’re heading, then the companies and organizations living above would need to find another location,” he said. “Since it is the town that has a lease agreement with these organizations I’m working to find another location when that occurrence takes place.”
With the closing of an elementary school something the Board of Education’s been working toward, one possibility would be to relocate tenants to whatever school is vacated.
“I don’t know what the Board of Education’s plans are now,” Mr. Marconi said. “…That is still an open question with the Board of Education.”
Mr. Marconi expected to have a proposed revision of the RVNA’s lease to present to the Board of Selectmen’s meeting this week — Wednesday night, too late for this issue of The Press.
“It will be a new lease,” he said. “Their draft is for 25 years with a 25-year renewal. That’s what will be discussed at Wednesday night’s meeting — all of that lease is in draft form.”
Currently, the association gets a discount in recognition of its contributions to the town, but still pays a considerable amount in rent.
“All in all, their rent’s about $100,000 a year, minus a $42,000 grant that’s given by the town to that organization, so they’re netting out about $60,000,” Mr. Marconi said.
The association’s initial lease proposal will seek more space without a substantial increase in payment, in light of “the amount of services that are provided in the Ridgefield community, pro bono” by the nursing association.
“They want it with $1 a year. They’re agreeing to pay a CAM — a common area maintenance fee — that at the new square footage will yield a total revenue to the town compatible to what we receive today,” Mr. Marconi said. “The RVNA would like to have a lease that would reflect its contribution.”
Mr. Marconi wouldn’t predict how the Board of Selectmen might react to the draft lease and proposed changes.
“That’s going to be the meat of the debate,” he said.
But he thought it likely that some agreement would be reached — eventually.
“Are you going to say no to the RVNA? It’s a wonderful organization, they do a lot for the community. So, something has to be worked out. What the end product is, I’m not going to say at this point.”
Ms. Santoro said the RVNA’s plan has been in development for several years.
“It actually tracks back to a 2009 strategic planning process we had, coupled with feedback we received.”
The RVNA found people weren’t eager to see the organization move.
“We learned many of our constituents feel we should stay right where we are, 90 East Ridge,” Ms. Santoro said. “We couldn’t agree more. We love our location.
“It was best if we stay here in the center of town. We love our space,” Ms. Santoro said.
“However, we’re outgrowing it. We need to expand. We need to improve. For instance, the accessibility to us is difficult,” she said.
The lease is up for renewal, and RVNA has its 100-year anniversary in 2014.
“The timing is just perfect,” Ms. Santoro said.
She is eloquent on all the organization provides.
At this year’s RVNA Health Fair, she said, “We had 465 people in our space, who received over 800 free medical screenings.”
Many serious problems were discovered at the health fair, including one she said could have been life-threatening in the short term, if not swiftly acted upon.
“So many people required further medical follow-up, it just underscored the importance the RVNA has in promoting health, helping people, and the value RVNA brings to the community,” she said.
The health fair is once a year. The organization also works day in and day out, providing services to Ridgefielders, helping people recover at home rather than in institutions, treating long-term conditions.
“We’re a three-part organization,” she said. “We provide health care at home.
“We made over 36,000 homecare visits last year, to nearly 1,000 patients — that’s just the health care at home program,” Ms. Santoro said.
“We then provide community health and wellness programs. We serve thousands of clients,” she said. “We just gave 4,500 flu shots.”
The “well child clinics,” offered roughly once a month, provide exams and care “for underinsured children birth to age 18,” she said.
“The third part of our mission is we’re the public health nursing arm for the Town of Ridgefield. In that area, at the fall power outages, the storms, we stayed overnight all eight nights at the shelter to provide medical supervision for anyone needing health care.
“I was delighted and honored to do it,” she said.
The organization is substantial, and that is part of the reason more space is needed.
“We have 90 staff members,” she said.
“We have over 300 volunteers, without whom we couldn’t carry out this mission, It’s an organization with lots of moving parts.
“Our plan is to bring a lot of the disease management programming, that we provide to people one-on-one in their homes, to our building so more people can come in and receive it.” Mr. Santoro said.
“We’re looking to increase the amount of heath care education in our space.”
The space is too small, and it’s in need of upgrading.
“When you look at our growth of staff, our growth of patients served, the population data projections, as well,” she said, “we’ve really outgrown our space and need to improve it and expand it.”