A month after The Leopold said it will close, here’s what’s happening to its senior residents
All but 10 of the 79 elderly residents of The Leopold Retirement Residence have found new homes — a month after the owners announced the business would close March 31.
That’s according to Dan Hammill, the housing specialist hired by The Leopold to help its residents find new homes and connect them to resources as they move from the landmark building at 1224 Cornwall Ave. in downtown Bellingham.
Hammill also is a Bellingham City Councilman.
He has met with representatives of the Bellingham Housing Authority, state Department of Social and Health Services, city of Bellingham, Northwest Regional Council and the Opportunity Council to talk about available resources and options for the remaining 10 residents, the Leopold said in a news release it issued Friday.
Hammill said they would “work diligently to help every resident find a home.”
Help also came by way of a Jan. 10 event at The Leopold that featured more than 20 providers of senior housing such as independent living, adult family homes, assisted living and memory-care facilities, according to the news release.
A former hotel, The Leopold was converted into apartments for retirees in 1985. It had 93 units for seniors in an independent-living environment, and 79 were living there when they were told Dec. 17 of its impending closure.
It has been a retirement community for senior citizens for 33 years.
The owners cited rising costs and declining occupancy as the reasons for the decision to end the retirement community’s operations.
Residents were shocked and angered by the news, although they said rumors had been circulating before the announcement.
The Whatcom Council on Aging last week expressed “concern and dismay” over the closure and urged the owners to reconsider their decision.
“The Leopold is a valuable resource to older adults of this community and is unique in offering downtown senior housing. As primarily an independent living facility, many of the residents enjoy walking in downtown Bellingham, allowing them opportunities to participate in our community, something not readily available if living in other locations in Whatcom County,” the department said in a letter that was also sent to the city of Bellingham.
“This social interaction is important for the health of older adults, and for the community,” the letter states.
Next chapter for retirement community’s residents
As for the residents, they are moving on.
“If you pluck a dandelion and blow on it, all those little seeds go floating off,” said Stephane Ligtelyn, an 82-year-old former resident of The Leopold describing how the community he found there has dispersed.
“It’s a great loss. I won’t dwell on it. I’ll just have fond memories of it. It was a special place,” Ligtelyn said in a phone interview on Tuesday.
He had lived in The Leopold from September 2017 until Monday.
Ligtelyn loved The Leopold’s downtown location. Last week, he moved to Affinity at Bellingham, a retirement community for those 55 and older at 3930 Affinity Lane.
He had known about Affinity for nearly two years, Ligtelyn said, while sitting in his one bedroom apartment, surrounded by boxes that needed to be unpacked.
Ligtelyn said he will pay less than he did while living at The Leopold, but The Leopold costs included meals. He’ll need to cook for himself at Affinity, where the quarters are nicer and there are more programs, he said.
Affinity has 177 residents as of Wednesday, according to Danielle Hercules, its community director.
She said about 15 residents moved from The Leopold to Affinity.
J. Kaye Faulkner and his wife Mollie, who have lived in The Leopold for more than four years, also will be moving into Affinity, possibly as early Sunday. Both are 88 years old.
On Tuesday, over a cup of split pea and ham soup in the dining room at The Leopold, a still-angry Faulkner talked about the community he’d found there and the stress of having to move.
He said he would be “glad when I get this damn thing over with.”
“It’s disgusting to treat people this way,” Faulker said. “Morally, it’s corrupt.”
Because they both use walkers and don’t cook, Faulker said he and Mollie will look into accessing Meals on Wheels, which provides food to seniors.
As for others still at The Leopold, 40 residents remained in 36 apartments as of Friday.
By Feb. 1, just 17 apartments will be occupied, Peter Frazier, executive director for The Leopold Retirement Residence, told The Bellingham Herald Friday in an email interview.
As for the 10 residents who still need homes, issues that make it more difficult for them to obtain housing could include “low incomes, high care needs and a limited ability by residents and their families to connect with available resources,” Frazier said.
The Leopold also said residents have to give only a one-day of notice before they move and that they’re charged only for the days they’re living in their apartments, not the full month as was required in their rental agreement, according to the news release.
“(The) ownership felt it was in all residents’ best interest, both personally and financially, if they were allowed to vacate The Leopold and occupy their new residence as soon as possible,” Frazier said in an email. “By allowing residents to give only one day’s notice, it alleviated a financial hardship that residents would have endured and made for a much smoother transition, which was and has been the owners’ goal since the initial announcement.”
But that seems to have been a change from when the announcement of the closure was first made, people said on social media and in interviews with The Bellingham Herald.
The Leopold building’s future
Bellingham Equity owns The Leopold.
Downtown developers David Johnston and Bob Hall bought The Leopold in April 2006 for $4.6 million, and the two are members of Bellingham Equity.
The nine-story building is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Built in 1929, it began as the Leopold Hotel. A four-story addition was built next to it in 1968.
As for what will be done with the building once residents have moved out, its owners are developing plans and will announce them in spring.
Volunteer help elderly with moving
The closure is affecting 26 employees, who will have to find new jobs.
Yet, employees are helping the residents pack and move. As are volunteers, Becky Brown, The Leopold’s activities director, said in the news release.
More than 100 people have volunteered through the Downtown Bellingham Partnership, which organized the aid after people wanted to know how they could help.
“The outpouring of support from the community has been amazing,” Brown said. “Our residents are beyond appreciative. I’ve had residents moved to tears when they learn they don’t have to move by themselves or pay people to help them.”
Ligtelyn and Faulkner expressed appreciation for the help and praised The Leopold’s employees and their kindness.
This story was originally published January 22, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
