File photo In this Feb. 2 rendering of what the Oak Hills Living Center courtyard will look like after the center's expansion project.

Oak Hills Living Center is requesting $50,000 from the Economic Development Authority to assist funding an expansion project to add rooms to the center.

The plan would be to add 15 enhanced assisted living and 15 memory care suites to meet the growing demand for senior care. This expansion will create 30 specialized housing units and an additional 20-25 jobs.

The EDA Board was in favor of assisting Oak Hills, but there was a question of the best way of providing the funds. Legal counsel recommended the board take no legal action until next month’s meeting to give the city’s legal counsel time to make a recommendation and prepare documents.

Board Chairman Daniel Braam said this came down to the mechanics off moving forward with funding requests that fall outside current EDA programs.

“Since this really doesn’t fit one of our existing funding mechanisms, we have to look at it a little differently,” Braam said.

The plan was to have rules and guidelines in place for the payment to insure the money would be used for the expansion.

Housing Coordinator Heather Bregel said the concern was giving out $50,000 with no strings attached. The EDA has no way of getting the money back if Oak Hills canceled the expansion.

The city’s legal counsel wanted an agreement in place to ensure the money was paid back if not used for the specified purpose.

Board member Andrea Boettger made a motion to support Oak Hills’ application for assistance and direct staff to work with city attorney to review for legal compliance to prepare any necessary documents for EDA review at next’s months meeting. The motion was approved by the board. A formal agreement will be brought back to the board for review at the June meeting.