St. Stephen, N.B., seniors care home Lonicera Hall closing after over 90 years

A seniors care home in St. Stephen, N.B., is closing its doors after 90 years.

A seniors care residence in the centre of St. Stephen, N.B., is set to close its doors after more than 90 years in operation.

The Lonicera Hall Board of Trustees has announced they will be closing the doors of the iconic institution as a result of declining occupancy, rising operational costs, changes to the seniors care environment, and the limitations of a volunteer-based governance model.

Lonicera Hall was built in 1841 and opened as a seniors care residence in 1935. The 20-room facility provides independent seniors with short and long-term rental options while also receiving care.

“We want to be transparent that Lonicera Hall will not be able to operate beyond early summer,” a media release sent to residents and families of the facility obtained by CTV Atlantic reads.

“This means that all residents will need to transition to new accommodations before operations end. We understand that this may feel overwhelming, and we will continue to communicate clearly as the process moves forward.”

The hall says they do no not have authority to place residents in nursing or special care homes. Social Development, with help from families, Extra-Mural, and other community agencies will be involved in the replacement of residents.

“We understand this news is difficult,” reads the release. “Our focus at this stage is to ensure that information is shared clearly and respectfully as the situation progresses. Relevant information will be shared as it becomes available.”

CTV reached out to the Lonicera Hall board of trustees for more detail about the upcoming closure, but the board declined an interview at this time.

St. Stephen Mayor Allan MacEachern says seeing the news about the hall’s future “was a shock.”

“It’s a very staple of our community,” says MacEachern. “The Lonicera Hall has been here for years, and it’s been providing a service to our municipality and the county for that matter.”

MacEachern says more or less everyone in town has some sort of connection to the nearly a century old facility. He says as a kid he once mowed the lawn and help do landscaping on the property.

He adds the biggest focus right now is ensuring the around 10 residents currently staying at the hall have a place to go when operations end.“

They’ve talked about some deadlines they got to meet, and so we get to focus on the people that are living here,” MacEachern says. “They’re at half capacity, but they have to find a home and from what I’ve heard so far, social development is working very well with them.”

While there is always a need for seniors care, MacEachern says the dynamic around carrying for the older population has changed in a positive way thanks to programs like Nursing Homes without Walls.

He says it’s difficult for any municipality to lose a historical piece of the community.“

When you have people and connections, it’s gets to the heart.”

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