Belknap County commissioners voted to award the county’s dietary-services contract for the nursing home and the Department of Corrections to Cura Hospitality LLC (listed in meeting materials as Cura/Kira Hospitality). County administration said the procurement followed an RFP with four bidders and further interviews that narrowed the field to two finalists.

Sean Richardson, presenting the procurement recommendation, said the county evaluated menu plans, staffing models, reference checks and service proposals. Richardson said Cura offered menu variety, corrections-specific experience and an approach to staffing and dining-room service that county leaders judged most likely to address recurring service and consistency problems with the incumbent provider. “We would like to recommend Cura Hospitality LLC for our contracted dietary service,” Richardson said.

Presenters said the incumbent provider, Glendale (now part of a different corporate structure), had served the county since February 2018 but that the county had persistent complaints about portioning, service consistency and dining-room availability. Reference checks for Cura were described as positive; Cura currently serves clients in nearby states and has a presence in Hillsborough County but does not have many nursing-home clients in New Hampshire, presenters said.

Commissioner motion language on the record was to accept the administrator’s recommendation and to award the contract to Cura; another commissioner seconded the motion. “All in favor?” commissioners then responded “Aye,” and the chair declared the motion carried. The motion approved a multi-year initial contract (three years for a new participant, per the RFP) with annual renewals thereafter; the procurement team said implementation would start after standard notice timelines to the incumbent and transition planning.

Discussion items included implementation timelines, transition staffing and the need for weekly reporting and resident feedback; commissioners directed administration and the procurement team to finalize contract details and manage the transition to start service under Cura by the agreed date. No dollar amounts were disclosed in the public presentation materials at the meeting.