The Park Hospital District Board of Directors will meet at 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, Jan. 20, for the first of a series of special meetings and work sessions to identify its current and future structure as a relevant governmental body
As discussed at the board’s meeting on Jan. 8, the special meetings are a prelude to the District revamping its operations now that UCHealth is operating the Estes Valley Medical Center, formerly known as Estes Park Health.
The upcoming meeting is posted on the Park Hospital District’s website, along with a packet of materials outlining items slated for discussion.
First up on the agenda is discussing changing the regular meeting dates to the fourth Wednesday of each month to ensure consistent use of the Town Board meeting room at Town Hall. The board initially had hoped to meet on Thursdays.
Once the board gets that housekeeping business settled, it will move on to meatier topics, including bylaw changes and policy reviews related to oversight of funds and complete transparency of financial reporting to the public. Bylaws, the Open Records Act, and spending policies are listed for discussion, and no formal action is anticipated on those items.
PHD recently joined the Special Districts Association of Colorado, and board members have begun reviewing local operations in relation to SDA recommendations.
According to a memo whose contents are expected to serve as the basis for discussion, Board Treasurer Brigitte Foust notes that the bylaws for PHD reflect “corporate or hospital-style governance models rather than the statutory structure required for a Title 32 special district.”
While stating there was no wrongdoing in creating the current bylaws, her memo calls for them to be reviewed by an attorney specializing in special district law. Current bylaws were developed as part of the package of documents that transferred EPH to UCHealth last year.
Another area of concern to Foust is the District’s financial infrastructure. Using SDAC’s recommendations, Foust outlines five specific areas of standard financial practices that the board is expected to discuss during its Tuesday meeting, including complete financial oversight, a statement of the treasurer’s required duties, monthly financial reporting, transparency and public reporting, and the compliance gap for the District.
The meeting will be held via Teams, a Microsoft-hosted virtual platform. Click here for the meeting link, which is also available on the hospital district’s website.
Other topics the board is expected to discuss in the next six weeks include further discussion of legal representation by a firm specializing in special district law; developing a mission, values, and vision statement with the assistance of a meeting facilitator; setting goals for the district; and other contractual agreements.