by Lisa Schauer
In a standing-room-only public meeting at Bath Town Hall on Tuesday, August 4, Mayor Greg Schene acknowledged the town’s interest in acquiring the late Betty Lou Harmison’s house and property located next to The Country Inn. The Harmison’s operated the Inn for decades.
The property includes the Bath Keeper’s Cottage, greenways, old trees, and frontage on a now-rare riparian section of Warm Springs Run.
A document circulated through the hall with a note on it stating the council was entertaining the idea of acquiring the Harmison house south of and next to The Country Inn and Spa for $1.4 million.
The document was titled “Town of Bath Wellness Village Initiative Grant Funding Request.”
The town’s funding request, presumably tied to its interest in acquiring the Harmison property, is for a rural transformation grant.
Rural Transformation Grants provide funding to improve healthcare access, workforce development, and innovative care models in rural communities, according to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The grants are administered by the Rural Health Transformation (RHT) program, a federal initiative authorized under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025.
Councilwoman Mary Lynn Hickey, who authored the town’s funding request, said the RHT has guidelines she had to follow.
Calling it a “wellness concept,” Hickey denied the suggestion that the property would be a wellness center.
Owners and operators of several prominent local spas were in attendance, including members of the Omps family, owners of the neighboring Country Inn, and other hospitality venues in Morgan County.
Matt Omps told Council the rural transformation grant creates an unfair advantage.
Omps said his family does whatever they can for the community, and they have an interest in the bordering property.
Mayor Schene said the matter was discussed with the Omps family in the finance committee meeting held previously.
Schene said there is interest in the Harmison property to be worked out, and his goal was to protect it as one of the last remaining green spaces in town.
The town’s funding request, apparently tied to its intended use for the property, begins, “Town of Bath requests funding to launch the Spa and Wellness Village Initiative, a targeted economic revitalization project that transforms underutilized municipal real estate into a high-density, micro-retail business incubators (sic).”
Councilwoman Susan Webster said she would like to see the recommendation letter from Morgan County Economic Development Authority that was said to have accompanied the funding request.
