Valencia County Commissioner Georgia Otero-Kirkham, who is a member of the health commons board of directors, said during last week’s county commission meeting that the health commons has interviewed all of the service providers that submitted proposals in June.

Otero-Kirkham said the health commons board will select a service provider this month and hold a press conference to announce the selection.

She also said the health commons will work with the selected service provider to determine what information the provider will need before moving forward with a groundbreaking in December.

She expects the service provider to take a look at the location of the hospital, which healthcare services will be provided by the hospital, and the size of the hospital.

A lawsuit challenging actions by the county commission related to the project is still awaiting a district court hearing.

Health commons board member Georgia Otero-Kirkham, who is also a county commissioner, said during Wednesday night’s county commission meeting that the health commons has accepted a number of proposals from service providers.

She said the health commons board also was given scoring sheets to help rank each service provider.

The health commons board will discuss and possibly select a service provider on Wednesday, with negotiations on an agreement to follow.

Holding the proposals in the air for the public to see, Otero-Kirkham refused to disclose which service providers had submitted a proposal, saying in order to participate on the board, she signed a confidentiality agreement with Valencia Health Commons.

In response, Commissioner Pedro Rael called on Valencia Health Commons, including Otero-Kirkham, to provide full disclosure of its activities, including releasing the names of the service providers.

“It’s outrageous to withhold that information,” Rael said, adding, “We’re entitled to know what’s going on.”

The hospital project management contract Valencia Health Commons signed with Valencia County requires the health commons to provide annual reports and financial audits, as well as any reasonable reporting requested by Valencia County.

The site proposal provides a detailed look at what the city is calling the Healthcare Hub, the area of clustered medical facilities near the Camino del Llano interchange.

The Healthcare Hub includes Presbyterian Urgent Care, Belen Meadows Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center and the private medical practice of Roland Sanchez, among other medical-related facilities.

More than $22 million of infrastructure has been invested in the Healthcare Hub during recent years by the city and Belen Consolidated Schools — things like roadwork, waterlines, drainage and the Belen High School Career Academy’s nursing program.

At least four sites will be under consideration:

• Approximately 60 acres owned by the Valley Improvement Association near the intersection of Hillandale Avenue and the Manzano Expressway in Rio Communities;
• Approximately 14 acres owned by the City of Belen near the intersection of Christopher Road and Camino del Llano in Belen;
• Approximately 20 acres owned by a private individual near the intersection of Christopher Road and Camino del Llano in Belen;
• Approximately 10 acres owned by a private individual near the intersection of Don Luis Trujillo Boulevard and the Interstate 25 (I-25) Bypass in Belen.

The hospital is expected to need three acres, plus parking.

Three of the four proposed sites have been offered as a donation, if possible. The site near the I-25 Bypass has a price.

“The city is interested in a comprehensive comparison of all of the proposed sites,” Belen City Councilor Jerah Cordova told the Valencia County Commission on Wednesday night.

During the county commission meeting, Commissioner Pedro Rael cautioned the city about trying to donate land to Valencia Health Commons, a private nonprofit corporation, because the New Mexico Constitution typically disallows donations to corporations.

Internally, city officials have had extensive discussions of the law to ensure compliance, should the city’s proposed site be selected.

While that initial lawsuit was resolved when the New Mexico Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of the case, a new lawsuit challenging the contract and a $30,000 donation by the county to Valencia Health Commons was filed on Monday.

Otero-Kirkham, who was appointed to the health commons board last month, said the board discussed alternative sites for the hospital. Right now, the proposed location for the hospital is near the intersection of Hillandale Avenue and the Manzano Expressway in Rio Communities.

She said the board also approved the language of a request for proposal for healthcare service providers, as well as a memorandum of understanding that eventually would be signed with the chosen provider.

The board took action despite the lawsuit pending in district court.

The lawsuit filed Monday afternoon in district court says the county commission’s donation of $30,000 to update a feasibility study of the proposed hospital, which was approved at a meeting last month, is illegal under the anti-donation clause of the constitution, which prohibits governments from making “any donation to or in aid of any person, association or public or private corporation.”

The donation was made to Valencia Health Commons, a private nonprofit corporation. The anti-donation clause, however, has exceptions.

The lawsuit also questions the validity of the contract Valencia County signed with Valencia Health Commons.

The original lawsuit, which was recently ended after the New Mexico Supreme Court refused to hear to case, also challenged the validity of the contract. Previously, the New Mexico Court of Appeals held that the contract was valid under the New Mexico Hospital Funding Act.

Last month, the county commission amended the contract to extend it by 20 months, giving Valencia Health Commons 56 months instead of 36 months to build a hospital.

Specifically, the new lawsuit alleges the contract is invalid because it “imposes no obligation or duty on Valencia Health Commons to actually construct a hospital in Valencia County,” or what the court filing calls “a lack of mutuality of obligation.”

The attorney for the plaintiffs, James L. Sanchez, is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief from district court, asking the court to find a violation of the anti-donation clause, as well as to void the contract between Valencia County and Valencia Health Commons.