Rochelle may be home to deluxe nursing, rehab facility

By John Shank
Posted 8/18/17

If things fall into place, a new deluxe 124-unit skilled nursing, rehabilitation and assisted living facility may be built on Rochelle’s northwest edge of town by the fall of 2019.

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Rochelle may be home to deluxe nursing, rehab facility

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ROCHELLE — If things fall into place, a new deluxe 124-unit skilled nursing, rehabilitation and assisted living facility may be built on Rochelle’s northwest edge of town by the fall of 2019.
According to developer Don Fike, of RFMS, Inc., the facility would be built on approximately 10 acres of land off of Flagg Road, just south of Lincoln School and north of San Gabriel.
“In addition to the 92 nursing and rehab units, we would also build another 32 assisted living units, featuring private apartments,” Fike said, while visiting Rochelle on Monday afternoon.
Operating locally as Liberty Village of Rochelle, the one-story facility would be nearly 64,000 square feet, cost approximately $20 million and provide jobs for 175 staff members.
“The facility would boast several features, including private baths and showers in each bedroom,” Fike explained. “There would be neighborhood dining on each wing and complete comfort control for heating and air conditioning.”
He added that state-of-the-art physical therapy and occupational therapy areas highlight the project, which includes a Main Street theme with a library, ice cream parlor and both an outdoor and indoor lounge among other amenities.
According to the plan, 30 units would be designated for general long-term care residents, while 22 units would be for dementia and Alzheimer’s residents and 40 units would be ear-marked for short-term rehabilitation residents utilizing the renowned Bounce Back and AJ’s Fitness programs.

Fike said the application for the project has been submitted and accepted by the state and is still subject to approval by the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board, but he hopes a hearing date will be set for late this year.
RFMS construction manager Ken Phillips said if the project were approved, building could begin as early as spring of 2018 and would take approximately a year and half to complete.
“About 80 percent of the building would be done in about a year, but the final 20 percent takes a lot of time due to all of the governmental approval processes involved,” Phillips explained.
Local real estate broker Tim Hayden, who has been helping develop the project, said the property is already zoned residential and so far there has been strong local support for the project.
“We believe there is a need in Rochelle for a facility like this,” Hayden said. “I’m confident the local city leaders will work with RFMS to move the project forward.”
Fike, who resides in Tonica said he’s been involved in building more than 50 nursing facilities in four states, including Illinois, Iowa, Nevada and Florida, and the company has various projects in more than 100 communities.
“We like small towns, and can we make this size of a project work here in Rochelle? Yes, we can,” he assured.
A good example of Fike’s group working well in a small town is in Clinton, which is located south of Bloomington and has a population of approximately 7,000.
In the late 1990s, City of Clinton and DeWitt County leaders were in need of a private nursing facility and actually did a search for a partner, which led them to RFMS.
Clinton City Administrator Tim Followell said the relationship with Fike has been excellent and the project led to the city accomplishing several development goals.
“Honestly, they have been a very good partner with the community and the county,” Followell stated. “Don and his staff are great to work with and are highly involved with the community. In addition to providing very important services for our elderly population, they also host many events open to the general public, including job fairs, Easter egg hunts, fireworks and others. I have nothing but good to say about Liberty Village.”
Fike pointed out that quality of life care for aging residents is becoming more and more important in today’s society, and he is dedicated to providing the best services.
“Our rehab programs are excellent,” he said. “And as we all get older memory issues affect most everyone to some degree, so we work to provide facilities and therapies to help individuals and their families deal with these cases. So far we’ve received a lot of great local support for this project, so I’m excited about the prospects of bringing a top-notch facility to Rochelle.”