Progress is slow for plans to bring an assisted living facility to Soldiers Grove.

“We are still looking at what is possible,” said Jackie Carley, the Vice President of Finance
and Administrator of Sannes Skogdalen Heim. “This is really in its infancy.”

One thing those interested in siting an assisted living facility in Soldiers Grove have determined is that retrofitting the nearby Golden Acres Apartments is impractical.

“Assisted living can have a lot of different options, so we still have to determine just what we need, before we can take this to the board or begin looking for investors,” Carley said.

Carley has met with Soldiers Grove Village President Jerry Moran and will continue to do so.

One priority of the project, which was first looked at when Don Sannes was still running Sannes Skogdalen Nursing Home, is keeping it in town. That has Carley looking at the possibility of a facility being constructed just south of the nursing home along Sunshine Boulevard.

“We need this service in our area,” Carley said. “We need something that gives people help, while allowing them to retain greater independence than what the nursing home is designed for.”

“Construction looks like it is the best alternative, at this point,” Moran explained.

Moran said he continues to work with Dale Klemme of Community Development Alternatives in Prairie du Chien on funding options and will meet with Carley again within a week or so, as the village is interested in seeing the project move forward.