Recently, I spoke at the grand opening of the Daisy Hill Assisted Living facility in Versailles, Ky. In visiting this facility, I reflected on the future of this and other facilities and their importance as we anticipate the droves of baby boomers seeking to maintain a quality of life as they transition to assisted-living.
The facility was financed through USDA’s Business and Industry Guarantee Loan program. The $4.5 million loan guarantee to Pinnacle National Bank of Nashville has provided the owners an opportunity to create a beautiful facility for the residents.
Facilities like Daisy Hill are going to be especially important, as the demand for elder care facilities increase with the aging of our baby boomer generation.
In Kentucky, we have seen an increase in the last decade of nearly 45 percent in the boomers who reached the age of 55-64 – this is according to the 2010 U.S. Census. Their share of the state total population rose from 9.2 percent to 12.4 percent according to the Kentucky State Data Center.
This dramatic increase is only the first wave of “becoming of age” for the baby boomer generation. We can anticipate the ‘second wave” of boomers to be even more dramatic. There is no question the demand for assisted living facilities like Daisy Hill will continue the upward trend over the next decade.
While the primary focus of assisted living facilities is about providing residents and families with quality services. There is an equally important secondary focus, and that is to bring opportunities for economic development and jobs to the community.
The jobs being created by the opening of Daisy Hill is just the beginning of job creation opportunities for Versailles and surrounding communities. New opportunities for local businesses to provide products and services will also bring greater economic growth to the community – and hopefully will result in the creation of even more local jobs.
USDA Rural Development is multi-faceted in what funding programs it offers. In addition to providing financing for facilities like Daisy Hill, we can work with businesses and economic development organizations to help them secure financing for a variety of business development purposes.
To find out how USDA Rural Development programs can assist your community, click here.
