Dozens of families in Plano are scrambling to find a new home for their elderly loved ones after getting surprising news that the senior living facility is closing and they have 30 days to move.
There is concern building over undisclosed plans for the facility currently flanked by schools on either side and a daycare down the street. Ideas are being considered to transform the site into a residential drug and alcohol treatment facility with a detox center.
The unexpected news came on Monday in the form of an urgent email for residents at Cariad at Village Creek and their caregivers.
“A letter saying that unfortunately they had sold and all of the residents have to be out by June 22,” said Darlene Foster. “Immediately you just start thinking what am I going to do?”
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Foster’s 90-year-old mother, Pearl Carver, had just moved into Cariad seven weeks ago after suffering a fall that landed her in the hospital.
“For her, it’s been great,” said Foster about her mother’s experience at Cariad up until now. “She’s made a recovery.”
Foster and Carver invited NBC 5 inside her home decorated with old family photographs, plants, and now cardboard boxes for the upcoming move.
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She’ll be moving back in with her daughter and son-in-law. Carver feels for others who are scrambling to find a solution.
“That’s the part that really gets me,” said Carver. “There’s one guy, I think he’s been here seven years, he cries every day. It’s sad. They have no place to go. A lot of them are from out of state and they have no family.”
Representatives from other senior living facilities have been filing in to see if they can provide displaced residents and their caregivers any assistance in finding a new home.
“Thirty days is not uncommon. It is definitely stressful for families,” said Cameron Parsons, CEO of Parsons Group Inc.
A team from Parsons House Preston Hollow visited the facility off Plano Parkway on Wednesday and connected with four residents, said Parsons.
While the 30-day notice is in line with state law, Parsons said it can be difficult for some families to find the right home for their loved one. There are many factors that are looked at including cost, medical needs, available space, and proximity to family and doctors.
The admissions process at Parsons Group Inc. can take anywhere between two and 90 days to complete.
Parsons acknowledges the process is especially difficult for residents who are very sick or have no family.
“Who is signing these leases? Who is moving these people? Who’s helping with medical records,” he asks himself.
Foster is increasingly worried about the facility’s future after hearing from current employees.
“I did hear that it was going to be turned into a drug rehab facility,” said Foster.
Potential plans she feels parents with children at Prince of Peace School next door, a Montessori daycare on the other side of the senior living facility, and a daycare down the street should know.
“I’m 100% for having drug rehabilitation in communities, but I think it needs to be a little more upfront,” she said. “I just think the community needs to know what’s going on.”
NBC 5 went searching for answers.
SRI Management Midsouth is a third-party management company that does not own the building, according to President Rick Sweeney. NBC 5 asked for a statement specifically asking whether the senior living facility was sold to someone planning to open a drug rehab facility in its place. Sweeney sent NBC 5 the following statement:
"At this moment, I can confirm that the Cariad facility has indeed closed. As for the future of the site, it's been sold to another entity. I am aware of the many rumors and speculations circulating and understand the community's interest. However, it would be appropriate for the new owners to announce their plans for the site when they deem fit."
Sweeney later added he does not know who purchased the building. Online tax records do not yet reflect changes.
SRI, he said, was just notified that it had sold and residents need to be relocated.
"We are 100% focused on doing this and assisting our staff in finding new jobs," said Sweeney via email.
NBC 5 asked the city of Plano for insight into the situation unfolding at the location.
The city’s director of planning, Christina Day, confirmed that "While no permits have been requested, the city did have a formal zoning verification inquiry in December" for the address.
An employee at a real estate law firm inquired about a "residential drug and alcohol facility with detox."
Whether the new owners will in fact seek to open a rehab facility remains to be seen, and even then, it’s not a done deal.
At this time, the city said some rehab facilities would not need a change in current zoning but would need to meet other standards before being given the green light to open.
The city requires a certificate of occupancy when a business changes use or ownership which includes a review for compliance with zoning and other regulations. This has not yet been filed, according to the city.
In December, the city told the real estate law firm representative "that providing those services to disabled persons were permitted in the area covered by S-306 subject to meeting the other development standards necessary to receive a certificate of occupation."
Other requirements could depend on many factors including the rehab facilities licensing, what services would be provided and who would be receiving treatment.
Parsons is not associated with the situation but says senior living centers often close over a lack of money, staffing and in some cases to switch over to a different demographic deemed more lucrative or more in need.
Clear answers are hard to come by as this is very early in the process.
But the city of Plano will one day have to decide on the future of the area.
Foster is just happy to have people become aware of what’s at stake.
Update: Silvermark Memory Care told NBC 5 they are working to ease the transition for residents of Cariad at Village Creek. Silvermark said they are offering assistance, waiving their $3,000 entrance fee, reimbursing the cost of movers and matching the monthly price that residents were paying at Cariad. Silvermark told NBC 5 they have assisted seven families so far and have a few rooms left for memory care residents.
