Douglas Albrecht just moved into Addington Place, an assisted living facility in Collinsville, three months ago. But now he has to move again.
Addington Place managers announced this month that the facility is closing in April because the owner of the building sold the property, and the new owner does not want to use it for assisted living.
They said only that the new owner wants to “repurpose” the property, declining to answer the Belleville News-Democrat’s questions about how many residents and employees are affected by the closure and who the new and old property owners are.
The sale has not yet been recorded in Madison County. Property records do not include the property owner’s name; they list only a limited liability company called ARHC CHCOLILO1 and a P.O. box in Houston.
Addington Place is managed by a third-party management company called Arvum Senior Living, which is part of Discovery Senior Living, the second largest senior housing operator in the country. Arvum manages the company’s Midwest properties in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Wisconsin.
In addition to the Collinsville facility, Arvum also manages locations in Shiloh, Edwardsville and Sparta.
Addington Place of Collinsville is located at 1207 Vandalia Ave., just off of Illinois 159 behind SIHF Healthcare. It has 51 regular housing units and 15 memory care units, according to information from its state license.
Albrecht’s sister Patrice Shalenko said Friday that she is still looking for alternative care for him. One facility she contacted refused because they did not think it had enough nursing staff to take care of Albrecht, who needs help bathing and changing dressings on his legs, according to Shalenko.
“It’s gonna be hard to find a place,” she said.
Albrecht has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. He noted that he and other disabled residents will now be moving “in the dead of winter.”
Managers announced the news to residents on Jan. 13, promising to help them with the transition to other facilities. A letter to residents and families stated that the closure would happen no earlier than April 10. It was signed by Arvum Senior Living Chief Operating Officer Richard Totorico.
“As the third-party manager of Addington Place of Collinsville, we are cooperating with the difficult decision to permanently close the community,” Totorico wrote in the letter. “Please know that we are saddened by this and understand the significant impact this may have on you and your family.
“... Our team will be reaching out to each family to discuss next steps and begin individual planning for this transition.”
Albrecht and Shalenko said they are still curious about why the decision was made to sell the property and when it was decided.
“Why would they let him come in in October?” Shalenko said. “Did they have no inkling then?”
Editor's note: This story was originally published by the Belleville News-Democrat. Lexi Cortes is a reporter for the Belleville News-Democrat, a news partner of St. Louis Public Radio.
