Bear Valley Community Healthcare District outlines services expansion and urges support for parcel tax replacement Measure U

Bear Valley Community Healthcare District CEO Evan Raynor told the Big Bear Lake City Council that the district is expanding local services and is asking voters in the district to approve a parcel tax replacement measure, referred to as Measure U, to sustain the work.

Raynor, who identified the hospital as a 30-bed critical access facility, said the district provides a 24-hour emergency department and has added and plans to add specialty services including ophthalmology, orthopedics, psychiatry/behavioral health, pediatrics, pulmonology, sleep studies and an on-site MRI program. He said some services recently added include an ophthalmologist and optometry staff, and the hospital has performed emergency dialysis and transported patients to skilled nursing when needed during a recent wildfire with poor air quality.

Raynor said the district’s Community Health Needs Assessment identified mental and behavioral health as a top local need. He described plans to recruit providers and expand clinic and surgery services, and provided approximate equipment cost estimates: an echocardiogram program ($100,000), MRI installation (roughly $250,000 for site pad and concrete), new patient monitoring equipment ($350,000) and a dialysis machine ($100,000). Raynor said some equipment projects aggregate to roughly a half-million dollars.

Why it matters: Raynor framed Measure U as a local funding mechanism intended to preserve emergency and specialty services in a remote community where the next nearest emergency room is about 50 minutes away. He said the measure is a replacement parcel tax and cited California Government Code section 53730.1 for uniform parcel tax rules described in the presentation.

Details and ballot schedule: Raynor said the measure would be a uniform $40 parcel tax for most properties in the district, and that mail ballots would be sent to registered voters in the district the week of May 26, 2025, with ballots to be postmarked or returned by June 24, 2025. He said the change would lower the tax rate for roughly 80% of property owners in the district (from $45 to $40 for 10 years per the district’s description) but noted that for unimproved parcels the assessed amount would increase from $20 to $40 for 10 years. Raynor said revenues would be tracked in a separate account and reported on annual audits specific to nurses, doctors and equipment.

Council interaction: Council members asked clarifying questions about the ballot timeline and who receives ballots; Raynor replied ballots go to registered voters in the district. No council action was taken on the measure during the meeting; the presentation was informational.

Context and caveats: Raynor warned of possible federal Medicaid funding reductions and framed the parcel tax as a local investment to sustain services, recruit certified emergency physicians and pursue stroke and trauma designations. He referenced support from Representative Jay Obernolte’s office for a VA long-term care program contracted in December. Raynor also said the hospital aims to pursue stroke accreditation and other quality designations.

Ending: Raynor concluded by urging voters in the district to consider the replacement measure to continue funding local services the district described as essential to the valley’s health and local economy.