Bozeman (Mont.) Health terminated the purchase agreement submitted to Western Montana Mental Health for the Bozeman-based Hope House and the surrounding mental health campus.
According to a Sept. 30 news release, Bozeman Health encountered barriers during due diligence that "were not in the best interest of the health system."
In a Sept. 30 report from the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Bozeman Health Chief Nursing Officer Diane Patterson said that a covenant held by Gallatin County on the property was a sticking point in the deal. Bozeman Health Chief Government and Community Affairs Officer Denise Juneau told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle that negotiations had been going on for some time, but the organization could not get around the covenant.
The covenant was established in 2010 to guarantee the availability of mental health crisis beds. It came with a $1 million bond issuance from the county for the Hope House to be available as a local mental health emergency detention and crisis facility, according to the report.