Your local government owner's manual
By REID MAGNEY / La Crosse Tribune

Congratulations! You are the owner of your local government. Assembly is required — and protected by the First Amendment.
Your local government has many features and functions, which may vary by location. It comes with a lifetime warranty, and will give you years of service if you operate and maintain it properly.

What this manual covers
Installments of this Local Government Owners Manual will be published twice monthly. It is also interactive — owners may request specific topics.
This manual deals with county, city, village and town governments in Wisconsin, which be-came a state in model year 1848.
Owners of local governments in Minnesota may consult this manual, but be aware that your state is a newer model (1858) and contains enhanced features, including lower property taxes, dramatically smaller county boards and Garrison Keillor.

To use this manual
Determine which model of local government you own.
Wisconsin is divided into 72 counties, each with its own operating system of ordinances. This manual will use La Crosse County and its municipalities as examples. If you live elsewhere, your results may vary.
Owners of La Crosse County government also will find themselves owners of one of 18 cities, villages or towns.
To determine your municipality, look at your tax bill. (NOTE: It is sometimes helpful to be seated before looking at a tax bill. These and other tax-safety measures will be dealt with in greater detail in subsequent chapters.) Your tax bill will tell you in which municipality you live, as well as your school district and any other special districts that have their hands on your wallet.
If you are a tenant and do not have a tax bill, you may consider yourself lucky; however, your taxes are included in rent. Whether you’re a property owner or a renter, you have the same rights when it comes to your local government.
You may consult your local Post Office, but understand that some people with La Crosse mailing addresses may live outside the city of La Crosse in towns such as Campbell, Shelby and others. The same is true for Onalaska, Holmen and West Salem. If you truly don’t know where you live, call the La Crosse County Clerk’s Office, (608) 785-9581, which can tell you what municipality to live in and where to vote.
As a local government owner, you are entitled to elect people to represent your interests on a council or board, as well as a chief executive, known as a mayor or a village president or town chairman or chairwoman. Some of them are volunteers, while others may receive a small salary (and a few even get health insurance benefits) as compensation for the many hours they spend doing the people’s business. These officials must be re-elected every two or four years, but there are no limits on how many terms they may serve.

Warnings
Operate local government in a bright, well-ventilated, cool, dry place away away from heat sources, vibration, dust, moisture and/or cold.
Do not attempt to clean local government with chemical solvents; this might damage the finish. Fresh air, sunlight and voting booths are the most effective, environmentally friendly way to clean local government.
Failure to vote may temporarily void your warranty. While failure to vote does not suspend your right to complain about your local government’s actions and taxes, your argument will carry much less authority.

Dealing with parking rules
As an owner of local government, you also own the streets and public parking lots. However, your city, village or town may have ordinances that restrict parking or require you to pay to park.

Where to park
Unless restrictions are posted, you can generally park on most city streets when you like, except the winter months (see Alternate Side Parking).
Downtown La Crosse and some other areas do have restrictions, intended to make parking convenient for shoppers and residents.
La Crosse has a large number of free parking spaces for shoppers and short-term visitors, typically with a two-hour limit. These spaces are typically available on the streets, in surface lots and the three parking ramps: Main Street, La Crosse Center and Market Square.
Long-term parkers can feed meters in the Market Square ramp or lease space on a monthly basis. All-day free parking is available on some streets on the outskirts of downtown.

Alternate-side parking
Starting Nov. 1 each year, alternate-side parking goes into effect in La Crosse, Onalaska, Holmen and West Salem. This continues until at least the end of March. That means from 1 to 6 a.m., vehicles must be parked on the even-numbered side of the street on nights with even calendar dates, and on the odd-numbered side on odd-numbered calendar dates. On streets where parking is permitted on only one side, vehicles may be parked on that side every night.
The fine for parking on the wrong side in La Crosse is $5. The fine increases to $10 if not paid within 10 days and to $20 if not paid within 45 days.

Parking enforcement
La Crosse Police civilian employees monitor parking downtown and often put chalk markings on tire treads to catch people who exceed posted limits. They typically make one pass in the morning and another two hours later, and the same in the afternoon.
If your tires get chalked, you can move your vehicle to the other side of the street or around the corner. You’ll get in trouble if they catch you wiping the chalk off.
The base ticket for overtime parking is $8. You have 10 days to pay it or contest it before the fine increases.

Troubleshooting
If you get a ticket, you have three options:
PAY IT: Go to the City Treasurer’s office on the second floor of City Hall. There is also a drop box outside City Hall, but do not leave cash in this box.
FIGHT IT: If you believe the ticket was issued in error, you can fight it by stopping
in at the police department at City Hall,
400 La Crosse St., and explaining why you think you didn’t deserve it. Lt. Patrick Hogan said police do dismiss some tickets. If they won’t, you can go to municipal court. Go to the clerk’s office at City Hall, and the clerk will set an initial court appearance, which is generally Wednesday morning in the Council Chambers at City Hall. After the appearance, you can have a pretrial meeting with the city prosecutor. Relatively few people fight parking tickets.
IGNORE IT (not recommended): Put the ticket in your glove box, where it will grow to several times its original size, depending on how long you ignore it, and could lead to the suspension of your vehicle’s registration.

How to get a pet license
As an owner of your local government, you are entitled to the use of animal control services. One way we pay for these services is through pet licenses.

This chapter of the Local Government Owners Manual will guide you through the process of licensing your pet.

Step 1. Do you have a pet?

If the answer is yes, keep reading. If the answer is no, go read Buckles, Garfield or Get Fuzzy in the Comics section.

Step 2. Is your pet a dog?

If the answer is yes, you need to buy your dog a license. This is true anywhere in the state of Wisconsin.

Step 3. Is your pet a cat?

If the answer is yes, you may need a license if you live in:

Property taxes
As an owner of local government, you are entitled to much of the information it keeps about you and your neighbors, including how much everybody pays in property taxes. By law, those records are public.

Until relatively recently, seeing those records involved a trip to your city, village or town hall, or county courthouse. But today, you can look up your own tax and property value records (and snoop around in your neighbor’s) from the comfort of your home using the Internet.

La Crosse County has had a Land Records Portal on its Web site for the past two years.

INSTRUCTIONS

To get there, go to www.lacrossecounty.org.

On the right, you’ll see a column of links. Under “General Information,” click the top link: “Land Records Information Website.” Click the “Accept” button on the disclaimer page. You’ll see a “Welcome” page. In the left-hand column, under the county seal, click “Real Estate Parcels.”

You’ve now reached the main search page, which gives you several ways to search for property. If you have your tax bill and want your own tax information, use the first boxes at the top of the page to enter your tax parcel number. It should take you right there. If you don’t have the number or want to look up other people’s information, use the property address or owner name searches. Click the “Perform Search” button.

You may get one or more records. Click the one you want to see. You’ll see a gray page with several “tabs” along the top, like file folders.

The first one, for “Parcels” gives you very basic information. Click the “Taxes” tab to find out how much the land is worth and how much the taxes are for the current year. The “Assessments” tab gives you a little more information about the land’s value.

USES

Information from the Land Records site has a variety of uses:

nCompare your current and previous year’s tax bills and values.

nLook up your property tax payments if you lose your bill.

nGather information to challenge your assessment at the Board of Review.

TROUBLESHOOTING

Q: When I search for a name or address, I don’t get any results. What’s wrong?

A: The computer saves names and addresses in certain ways, so you might have to play around a bit. Click the “i” in the black circle to get help with search terms. There also is a “Site Help and How To” document near the bottom of the left column that contains search tips.

Q: I don’t have an Internet computer. What do I do?

A: You can look up the same information using public library computers. Get a reference librarian — or a 12-year-old — to help you.

You also can use public access computers at the La Crosse County Building, 400 N. Fourth St. Two offices can help you: Zoning, Planning and Land Information in Room 3170 and the Treasurer’s Office in Room 1290.

SOURCE: Information based on a flier prepared by Karl Green, community resource development agent for La Crosse County UW-Extension, http://lacrosse.uwex.edu.

To suggest future Local Government Owners Manual topics or to report malfunctions, contact Reid Magney at (608) 791-8211 or rmagney@lacrossetribune.com.

How they voted

As an owner of your local government, you are entitled - the policy wonks would say obligated - to know how your duly elected representatives have voted. This chapter of the Local Government Owners Manual will tell you how to find out how your school, town, village, city and county officials voted.

Local government bodies usually do business by voting on motions, resolutions and ordinances.

In most cases, those votes aren't controversial and often are unanimous.

But when something controversial comes up - approving budgets or tax increases, for example - you may want to know who voted how.

There are several ways to find out:

Attend meetings. If you're interested in an issue, you can be there when they vote. Can't get out of the house? La Crosse County Board and Onalaska City Council meetings are on local cable TV.

Just ask them. If you want to know how council or board members voted, most will be happy to tell you. Ask nicely.

Ask the clerk. Each local government has a clerk in charge of keeping meeting minutes. Stop by the office or call. Local numbers are in the phone book. CenturyTel's government listings start on page 87.

Request a copy of the minutes from the clerk. State law says meeting minutes are public records. Realize, though, that sometimes the minutes aren't available until the board or council has approved them at the next meeting.

Read the newspaper. The Tribune and other local weekly papers will publish roll-call votes on some issues of great public interest. This isn't always possible when local government has many members, such as the La Crosse County Board or La Crosse Common Council, so sometimes we publish just the names of those who voted in the minority.

Look it up on the Internet. Several local governments post meeting minutes online. Some links include:

www.cityofonalaska.com

www.cityoflacrosse.org

www.holmenwi.com/minutes.htm

www.westsalemwi.com/minutes.htm

www.townofshelby.com/town_meetings.html

www.lacrossecounty.org - This site has minutes and agendas for the county board and its committees. Many towns also have pages here for meeting information. Click on "Local, State & Federal Links" under General Information.

HOW TO GET A PET LICENSE

As an owner of your local government, you are entitled to the use of animal control services. One way we pay for these services is through pet licenses.

This chapter of the Local Government Owners Manual will guide you through the process of licensing your pet.

Step 1. Do you have a pet?

If the answer is yes, keep reading. If the answer is no, go read Buckles, Garfield or Get Fuzzy in the Comics section.

Step 2. Is your pet a dog?

If the answer is yes, you need to buy your dog a license. This is true anywhere in the state of Wisconsin.

Step 3. Is your pet a cat?

If the answer is yes, you may need a license if you live in:

* the city of La Crosse;

* the city of Onalaska;

* the village of Rockland;

* the town of Campbell;

* the town of Shelby.

Step 4. Do you want to save a little money on a pet license?

If the answer is yes, have your pet spayed or neutered. You'll spend $8 less a year. Licenses are $17 and $18 for fertile pets and $9 or $10 for spayed or neutered, depending on where you live.

Step 5. Do you want to save even more money?

If the answer is yes, buy your license before April 1. After April 1, expect to pay about $25 more.

Step 6. Do you want to save a lot of money?

If yes, buy a license. The fine for having an unlicensed pet in the city of La Crosse is $58.20.

In Onalaska it's $83.80 for an unlicensed cat and $243 for an unlicensed dog.

Everywhere else in La Crosse County, the fine is $243.

Frequently asked questions

Q. Where do I get a pet license?

A. From your municipal clerk or treasurer's office. In the city of La Crosse, you also can buy one from the Coulee Region Humane Society.

Q. If I buy or adopt a pet after April 1, do I have to pay the higher fee?

A. No. Owners of new animals have 30 days to buy a licenses. And if you get a puppy or kitten, you have five months to license it.

Q. What information do I need to get a pet license?

A. You must have proof of your pet's rabies vaccination. (Contrary to popular belief, a rabies vaccination tag is not a dog license.) Also bring proof your pet is spayed or neutered.

Q. What happens if my pet gets lost?

A. If someone finds your pet, it will be much easier to return it if you have is license, said Heather Schmid, executive director of the Coulee Region Humane Society.

HERE'S HOW TO FIGHT AN ORDINANCE

As an owner of your local government, you are obligated to obey its ordinances - the laws passed by cities, villages and towns. But before ordinances become law, you also have the right to object or press for passage.

This chapter of the Local Government Owners Manual will tell you how to influence your elected representatives on ordinances.

Q: What is an ordinance?

A: Ordinances are local laws that regulate everything from speed limits and sign sizes to government structure and spending. A zoning ordinance in your community may say how you can use your land and what you can build on it. Some ordinances carry fines if you violate them. Together, a local government's ordinances make up its "municipal code," a thick book read mostly by cops and city attorneys.

Most ordinances aren't controversial. But when they are, things get interesting. Remember La Crosse County's exotic animal ordinance that didn't pass because of opposition from snake owners? Remember the fights over smoke-free restaurants? Several new ordinances are being proposed in the area on issues related to smoking and to public intoxication.

Ordinances shouldn't be confused with ordnance, a term for military weapons.

Q: How do you know if your local government is proposing an ordinance that affects you?

A: It pays to read the newspaper, which usually writes stories about such things. In some zoning-related cases, you may get a legal notice if your property could be affected.

If you have a business that's regulated by local ordinances, you may want to introduce yourself to your council and board members, and ask for notice if changes are coming.

Many local governments have their own rules for proposing and passing ordinances. But most boards and councils will consider an ordinance at two or more meetings before final passage. They'll hold a public hearing to find out what you think before they vote.

Q: How do I know if an ordinance affects me?

A: When an ordinance that could affect you is proposed, the first step is to read it. Your municipal clerk will have copies. If you don't understand it, don't hesitate to ask officials from your local government to explain it to you. If it still doesn't make sense, you may want to consult an attorney.

La Crosse County Board Chairman Steve Doyle put it this way: "If it affects you directly and personally, you may want to hire a lawyer. If it's an issue you're interested in, you can handle it personally."

Q: What's the best way to oppose or support an ordinance?

A: If you have strong feelings about whether a proposed ordinance should be passed, you need to make your voice heard. You can make personal contact, or public contact. Attorney Brent Smith of La Crosse said people and groups who are most effective do both.

Doyle said the most effective means is a telephone call to your elected board or council representative. Some officials get very little feedback from the public, so "that one single phone call can change a board member's vote," Doyle said.

You also can write a letter or send an e-mail, but if you do, make it your own words, not somebody else's boilerplate argument. Also, don't bother sending anonymous letters, Doyle said.

Q: How do I find my elected representative's name, address and phone number?

A: In a perfect world, you remember his or her name from the most recent election. Many are listed in the phone book. If you don't know who represents you, call your county, city, village or town clerk's office and ask.

Q: What else can I do?

A: Petitions can be effective, especially if you get a lot of signatures. Just make sure they're local residents, not people from out of town.

Consider writing a letter to the editor of 250 words or less.

You also can attend meetings, especially the public hearing. You don't have to speak, but it helps, Smith said, "to have people come in and tell their stories, not just say this is good or bad."

If a group supports or opposes an ordinance, group leaders might want to pick people to testify who have "the most effective stories," he said.

Q: What if an ordinance passes that I don't like?

A: Then your most powerful ordnance is at the ballot box the next election.

RESERVING A PARK SHELTER

As an owner of local government, your taxes help pay for parks and other recreational facilities.

This chapter of the Tribune's Local Government Owners Manual will tell you how to reserve a shelter for your own event, whether it's a picnic, reunion or wedding.

CAUTION: If you want to reserve a picnic shelter in the city of La Crosse on a weekend in July or August, you're probably out of luck by now. Most local governments start taking reservations in early January.

Step 1: Find a location

The county, cities, villages and towns have a wide array of public parks, many with shelters that can be reserved for a day. Unfortunately, there's no central listing of all the park shelters and their features, so it helps to know your parks and what services they offer.

If you want information about a particular park, it helps to call or stop by your local parks/recreation department.

Step 2: Check availability

You can call any local government to check on park shelter availability. Some will let you make a reservation over the phone and send a check for the deposit/fee, while others make you come down in person. Even though it's a bit late, it doesn't hurt to call and see what's available. For the numbers, look in the dark-blue edged "Government Listings" in your phone book.

Step 3: Make a reservation

To get a prime La Crosse city or county park shelter on popular summer weekends, prepare to camp out the night before the first business day in January. A few hardy souls line up the night before, and long lines will form well before the sun rises.

Bring your checkbook. A reservation costs $50 for many La Crosse city shelters, except for the Myrick Park main shelter, which is $90, and Copeland Oktoberfest, which is $80 for the whole shelter. The Pettibone Gazebo and the Riverside Park Band Shell are available for weddings, concerts and civic functions only. And if you're a non-resident, it'll cost you $35 extra.

More information's available online at www.cityoflacrosse.org/index.asp?nid=299.

La Crosse County park shelters are a bit cheaper, at $38, but there's also a $30 refundable deposit. Non-residents pay $5 more. La Crosse County will take reservations by phone, with 14 days for payment.

More information's available online at www.lacrossecounty.org/Departments/Facilities/Brochures.htm.

Onalaska avoids the early-January rush for its seven park shelters by taking reservations anytime 12 months in advance. Prices range from $30 to $100, double that for non-residents. Onalaska doesn't have much information on its Web site, so the staff recommends stopping by City Hall in person.

Holmen starts taking reservations at the first of the year on a first-come basis for two enclosed shelters, at $25 a day. Reservations can be made in person, by phone or online at www.holmenwi.com/holmenpr.

West Salem takes reservations for its two shelters anytime - and years in advance. Cost is $20, plus a $20 refundable deposit.

Many area towns also have lovely parks and shelter facilities. Give the town hall a call for information.

Step 4: Have a party

Shelter reservations generally are for the entire day, so make the most of it. Don't forget to clean up after yourself, however. After all, you're an owner.

REGISTERING TO VOTE

An essential chapter: your franchise

As an owner of your local government, you are entitled - some say obligated - to vote in elections. There's another one coming a week from Tuesday.

In order to vote, you first must be registered. This is fairly simple in Wisconsin because the state allows election-day registrations.

This installment of the Local Government Owner's Manual will tell you how to register to vote. You have to re-register if you've moved or changed your name since you last voted.

Step 1 - Find out where you vote. Call your city, village or town clerk. Tell the clerk where you live, and ask for your polling place.

Step 2 - Get some identification. While you don't need a current or valid Wisconsin driver's license or state ID to register, it can make the process quicker, said La Crosse City Clerk Teri Lehrke.

If you don't have a license or ID, you have other options, including:

-- Any other official identification card or license issued by a Wisconsin governmental body or unit; Any identification card issued by an employer in the normal course of business bearing a photo of the card holder, but not a business card;

-- A property tax bill for the current year;

-- A current residential lease;

-- A university, college or technical institute fee card or ID with photo;

-- A current utility bill;

-- A bank statement, a paycheck or a check issued by a unit of government.

If you don't have any of the above, you can bring a "corroborator" - someone who lives in the district and can vouch for you.

In any event, if you don't have a state driver's license or ID, you're going to have to give the last four digits of your Social Security number.

Step 3 - Show up with ID on Election Day at your polling place, where the cheerful poll workers will be happy to take your information and register you. Lehrke said the registration process should only take five minutes or so.

In some smaller municipalities that haven't required voter registration in the past, voters were required to register starting in November 2006. In those places, poll workers kept a list of voters who showed up each election. If you live in one of those municipalities and didn't register and vote last November or in the February primary, be prepared to register this time.

GETTING A POTHOLE FIXED

Spring brings pothole season, when little craters open wide to swallow our tires and upend our suspension systems.

This chapter of the Local Government Owners Manual will give you the tools to get a pothole fixed.

As an owner of local government, you pay taxes to keep the roads as smooth as possible. That money flows to local street and highway departments, who do their best to patrol our byways and fix the potholes. But they can't be everywhere to see and fill every pothole.

That's where you come in. When it comes to potholes, sometimes the loudest hole gets filled first.

Step 1 - Find a pothole.

You should be able to figure this out for yourself.

Step 2 - Report a pothole.

There are two methods for reporting a pothole.

Method A - Call your city, village or town hall during regular business hours and ask for the Department of Streets or Public Works.

There's a good chance you'll be transferred to a friendly, helpful civil servant who will take down the location of your pothole and dispatch a crew to fix it.

Method B - Call a politician. That means your mayor or other duly elected member of the city council, or village/town board (assuming you know this person's name and phone number).

There's a chance the politician won't be home when you call, and you'll get a spouse, a child or an answering machine.

If/when you talk to the politician, or if/when he or she gets the message, the politician will call the city, town or village hall and put the fear of God into the friendly, helpful civil servant, who will dispatch the crew, who will fill the pothole.

La Crosse Mayor Mark Johnsrud said he prefers people try Method A first. "You'll get the same result," he said, whether you call the department or the council member.

Step 3 - Follow up.

After a reasonable amount of time, determine whether the pothole got fixed.

If it did, you can feel the satisfaction of having the clout to get something done at city hall.

If it didn't get fixed, you may wish to complain to your duly elected member of the city council, or village/town board.

WHEN TO OBTAIN A BUILDING PERMIT

Warmer weather's here to stay, bringing out the home improvement weekend warriors. But before you start demolishing or building things such as decks, garden sheds and fences, you might want to find out whether you need a building permit.

This chapter of the Local Government Owners Manual will give you guidance about when to get a permit and how much it'll cost.

Step 1: Figure out where you live.

If you live in one of La Crosse County's 12 towns, you're covered by La Crosse County's rules, which are less stringent than in a city or village. However, they're all a bit different.

Step 2: Figure out whether you need a permit.

La Crosse County: The county doesn't issue building permits, but "zoning occupancy permits" are required for detached buildings such as garages and pole buildings, detached accessory structures such as gazebos and swimming pools, and for residential additions, including decks.

Depending on what you're doing, it's possible you may need a town building permit. County staff will tell you what you need.

Even one of those 5-by-5-feet Rubbermaid plastic outdoor sheds requires a permit, said Jeff Bluske, director of zoning, planning and land information.

The county does not require permits for inside work such as kitchen remodeling or even new windows and doors. However, if you're converting an attached garage to a bedroom, you'll need to contact the Health Department because septic system permits are based on the number of bedrooms.

A county permit for residential additions, alterations and accessory buildings is $65 if the improvements are under $5,000. It's $95 for more costly projects. And if you get caught without a permit, the fee is double. For questions, call (608) 785-9722.

City of La Crosse - "It's easier to tell you what doesn't need a permit," said Barbara Benson, the front desk clerk at the city's Building and Inspections Department.

New roofing and siding and same-size window replacements don't require permits, nor do any cosmetic interior improvements such as new flooring or kitchen cabinets. But if you put up a half-wall or knock a hole in an existing wall, you need a permit.

Permits generally are $50 for work less than $5,000, though wooden patio decks and sheds are $30.

"If you're in doubt, give us a call," said Benson. The department's number is (608) 789-7530.

City of Onalaska - Permits are required for exterior structural alterations, said Calvin King, residential building inspector.

That includes roofing and siding, but not windows if the replacement window is the same size.

Accessory buildings larger than 5 feet-by-5 feet need permits, and must be anchored to the ground, and also must be 3 feet off the lot line, King said. General building permit fees are $30 for work less than $1,000 and smaller than 150 square feet.

For questions about permits, call (608) 781-9541.

Village of Holmen - Simple remodeling doesn't require a permit, but additions and decks do, said Clerk/Administrator Catherine Schmit.

Stick-built accessory buildings require permits, but prefab sheds don't need one. Holmen requires setbacks from lot lines, so it's good to call the village first for guidance at (608) 526-4336.

Village of West Salem - You can put up a garden shed in West Salem without a permit, as long as it doesn't have a slab, said Village Administrator Teresa Schnitzler. Remodeling with no change to the exits or lighting also doesn't need a permit.

Unlike some municipalities, West Salem requires permits for fences, with a $25 fee. The village's minimum building permit fee is $20, and may be more depending on square footage.

LA CROSSE COUNTY'S NURSING HOMES

As an owner of La Crosse County government, you are the owner of a high quality nursing home, which operates without local taxpayer support.

This chapter of the Local Government Owner’s Manual will tell you what you need to know if you or a loved one require nursing home services of Hillview Health Care Center.

The basics

Hillview Health Care Center is located at 3501 Park Lane Drive on La Crosse’s South Side, near the bluffs.

Hillview started out more than 100 years ago as the county’s “poor farm,” but has evolved into a modern health care facility.

Hillview has 199 beds. Of those, 30 are reserved for short-term care, meaning for people who are coming out of a hospital and need nursing home services until they’re ready to return home. The remaining beds are for longer-term care, including chronic illnesses, Alzheimer’s disease and “end of life” care.

The administrator of Hillview is Pete Eide.

Getting into Hillview

Ninety percent of Hillview’s admissions come from hospitals, Eide said. Discharge workers at the local hospitals coordinate with Hillview staff to place patients at Hillview. The No. 1 reason for admission is for therapy after a heart attack.

In 2006, 275 people were admitted to Hillview, and 75 percent went home in 60 to 90 days.
“There’s no waiting list,” Eide said. “It’s rare if there’s no opening.”

Some long-term Hillview residents come from their homes or assisted living facilities, but Eide said that kind of move takes more coordination and planning. Luckily, those people’s needs aren’t always as urgent as someone being discharged from a hospital.

“A good candidate has some specific health needs, such as bathing, dressing, toileting,” Eide said. Two wings, with a total of 60 beds, are reserved for Alzheimer’s disease patients, for whom Hillview has developed special programs.

The one thing everyone being admitted to Hillview needs is an order from a physician.

Paying for Hillview

Medicare pays for the majority of Hillview residents’ bills for after-hospital care for up to 100 days, Eide said.

For those who need longer-term care, Medicaid pays the way for between 50 percent and 70 percent of residents, while less than 10 percent have some kind of long term care insurance.
The private-pay rate for Hillview is $184 a day, which covers everything, Eide said.

“That sounds expensive, but hospitals are more expensive, from $700 to $800 a day,” he said.
Eide noted that Hillview’s entire budget is covered by fees for services, and local tax dollars aren’t required for its operation.

Checking out Hillview

Eide encourages people to visit Hillview. “Look at our surroundings, atmosphere and staff,” he said.
“We have person-centered care,” Eide said. That means they encourage residents to chose their own schedule and menu.

For more information about Hillview, call (608)789-4800.