Owners also sad, disappointed at closure of Malcolm Place in Kincardine

To the Editor:

I can understand how residents and families would be sad and disappointed at the closure of Malcolm Place in Kincardine. We, as the owners, are as well.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been very difficult for many businesses, especially retirement homes. At the peak of COVID-19, this sector had vacancies on average of 18 per cent. Malcolm Place had vacancies of 40 per cent; only hotels were worse.

Along with the great team at UniversalCare, we tried everything over the past year-and-a-half to increase occupancy so we could afford to keep the home open. Many small retirement homes continue to struggle and I would expect more closures in the future.

Since Tuesday of last week, when we gave our residents four months’ closure notice, as mandated by the Retirement Home Regulatory Authority (RHRA), we have had representatives of five retirement homes come to meet our residents. Just less than half of the residents have already made new living arrangements, with enough vacancies at the homes for more than double the residents we have.

We will continue to do our best to work with our residents and families to help them relocate.

John Piper
Malcolm Place Retirement Residence
Kincardine