The ultimate fate of the Goddard House Skilled Nursing & Rehabilitation Center building at 201 S. Huntington Ave. remains a mystery as it prepares for its closing date of Sept. 8.
Goddard House spokesperson Diana Pisciotta, said that after the closure, the building will be cleaned for several weeks. Then the building will be secured and have security guards on duty.
She said the nursing home’s board does not yet have plans for what happens after that. Sale or use for some other program were possibilities previously mentioned by the home’s leadership. The Home for Little Wanderers campus next door is the midst of a multi-million-dollar redevelopment into apartments.
As of last week, all former Goddard House patients had found new homes, Piscotta said.
“All residents have settled in other facilities,” she said.
After the facility closes, patients’ records will either be transferred to a secured facility or destroyed, depending on their relevancy, said Pisciotta.
Asked if maintaining a vacant building will be expensive, she responded that it will be less expensive than operative a nursing home.
“The operating of the nursing home was running a deficit the past several years,” said Pisciotta. “We were losing money every day we were open.”
Pisciotta was unable to provide numbers on how many Goddard House employees have found new work, but said employers at the jobs fairs had positive responses and said they expected to make job offers.
“We hope the bonus payments, job fairs and the significant notice helped the transition be easier,” she said.
She said that employees recently visited some former residents at their new facilities.
“That’s our staff. They go up and beyond,” said Pisciotta.
A previously announced meeting between Goddard President Elizabeth Molodovsky and local state Rep. Jeffrey Sánchez to discuss community concerns about the closure was postponed because of a scheduling conflict.
“It is what it is. I’m sure we will be meeting sometime in the future,” said Sánchez.
He added, “They’ve made their decision [on the closure]. I’m not the only one who has expressed concern.”