5 days ago
Aurora City Council approves giving $500,000 to VNA Health Care in support of new clinic
The city of Aurora is moving forward with giving VNA Health Care $500,000 in support of its newly-opened clinic at the Bloomhaven campus on Aurora's near East Side.
The Aurora City Council on Tuesday evening approved the move, despite concerns from some aldermen.
The money will go toward supporting the opening of VNA's new Primary Care Center, which offers services in both English and Spanish, at 323 Weston Ave. VNA, a nonprofit, accepts patients with Medicaid, Medicare, private insurance or no insurance, with potential discounts for those without insurance.
The nonprofit invested around $8 million in its new center, according to past reporting, with $500,000 pledged by city administration last July and recognized through a letter signed by former Mayor Richard Irvin and VNA CEO Linnea Windel. But the agreement never went before the City Council for approval, nor was it included in the 2025 budget.
The item most likely should have gone before the City Council when the agreement was made, Aurora Chief of Staff Shannon Cameron previously said, and it appears to have been simply an oversight of the previous administration.
The item was set to go to the City Council Finance Committee on May 15 but was held so more research could be done, according to past reporting. It went to the May 29 Finance Committee meeting, then came back to its meeting on June 12 with a change by Aurora Chief Financial Officer Chris Minick, who suggested the city pay the $500,000 in two installments. VNA tentatively agreed to the plan, according to past reporting.
The payment is now being split in half, distributing $250,000 this year and $250,000 next year, according to past reporting. This year's payment is set to be paid using city interest earnings, and the funding source for next year's payment will be decided during the 2026 budgeting process, Minick previously said.
The item was reviewed by the Committee of the Whole, and then ultimately discussed and voted on Tuesday by the City Council.
Ald. Edward Bugg, 9th Ward, who had previously expressed concern about the way the agreement was approved, said on Tuesday that he had 'serious doubts' about the matter going forward. He — along with Ald. Ted Mesiacos, 3rd Ward, and Ald. Keith Larson, at-large — voted against approving the payments to VNA.
But the majority of the City Council, acknowledging the potential error in the approval process, said they felt it was a worthy cause regardless.
Ald. Carl Franco, 5th Ward, said it was 'unproductive' to 'keep bringing it up and throwing people under the bus' and said the council should focus on whether it's appropriate to provide the funds.
'Is it worthwhile?' Franco said. 'I don't even think it's a question.'
Several council members echoed similar sentiments about the value VNA provides to the community, in spite of any possible mistakes made on the city's end.
But, looking to future votes, Ald. Daniel Barreiro, 1st Ward, who noted that he was voting for the proposal 'on a non-precedent setting basis,' said the city needs to ensure a similar situation doesn't happen again.
Now, with final approval secured, VNA is set to get the first installment of the payment this year for the new clinic, which opened in April, and the second half of the payment next year.
