Bernice Koenig, 83, put a $1,000 deposit down on a suite in Serenity Manor in Okotoks. A year after her possession date had passed she decided to move in somewhere else. photo by Darlene Casten

A large assisted living seniors development in Okotoks’ Sheep River valley is in receivership and owes $26 million to creditors including several local residents and businesses.

Serenity Manor, a 134-unit seniors complex, was owned by Stratum Developments, which has offices in Okotoks, Lethbridge and in British Columbia. They are also constructing similar projects in Fairmont and Nanaimo.

A Court of Queen Bench judge in Calgary appointed a receiver for the property on Oct. 15.

A staff member from Stratum Developments said he could not comment on the receivership and said the company is bound by a confidentiality agreement. Robert J. Taylor, a partner in a Calgary corporate restructuring group, is overseeing the receivership.

Work on winterizing the building is continuing he said, but nothing will be done to complete Serenity Manor until it is sold, Taylor said. The complex is 85 to 90 per cent complete.

Taylor said everyone who put a deposit down on a unit will get their money back. He said a different agency handled the deposits and will be returning it.

The building is up for sale and the purchase price will determine how much money can be paid to debtors.

“The numbers will fall where the numbers will fall,” Taylor said.

Court documents show Stratum Developments owes a lender $21.5 million and another $14.7 million to businesses who did work on the project.

A number of local businesses are owed thousands of dollars for services and products, but one local business owner said he is not counting on getting the money until he has it in his hands.

Todd Reidlinger of Okotoks Rentals provided heaters, boom lifts and man lifts at the site last winter, but by the spring, as the bills started piling up, the company took back their equipment.

Reidlinger said the developer made lots of promises to clear up its account, but didn’t come through until he placed a lien on the property. At that time they paid just over half of what they owed the company, but couldn’t make good on a promise to pay the rest over the next two months.

“You wish people wouldn’t lie,” Reidlinger said. “If you’re not going to pay then just tell us.”

Construction continues at Serenity Manor, an assisted-living complex in Okotoks. The building is being winterized while a receiver determines how to handle the finances for the property. photo by Darlene Casten

Okotoks Rentals is still owed just over $50,000 for their services, but Reidlinger acknowledged other businesses are in a far worse situation.

“I just look at it like they borrowed it instead of rented them,” he said of his equipment used at the site. “If you are a plumber or an electrician you can’t get back the materials you put in.”

One construction company is still owed nearly $5 million for the work they did on Serenity Manor. In total, 82 companies are owed money, according to a statement provided by the receiver. Of those, 23 had placed a lien against the property and are first in line to have their money paid if any becomes available.

It is unknown how many seniors had placed deposits on the units, which were being leased out monthly, but the fate of money put down as deposits is also in question.

Bernice Koenig, Reidlinger’s grandmother, placed a deposit on an apartment in February of 2008. The 83-year-old was looking to come to Okotoks to be closer to her children and grandchildren and when Serenity Manor was in the early stages of construction it looked like a perfect solution because it allowed her to live independently until she needed assistance.

She was told she could have an apartment in two months, but when she didn’t hear back from a salesperson, she put in a call. She was then informed that it wouldn’t be until May 2008. In May the building flooded, causing $275,000 damage, which was covered by insurance.

However, Koenig said she kept receiving promises she would be moving into her new home soon.

“They told me when the first or second floor was finished I could move into one of those suites until mine was finished because I was on the fourth floor,” she said. “They even told me they would provide my meals for the first two months because it was their fault I wasn’t in there.”

This year Koenig sold her Calgary home of 37 years in anticipation of moving into Serenity Manor, but as the possession date neared for the new owners of her home, her new apartment in Okotoks was still not nearly ready. At that point she was not able to get a hold of anyone from Stratum Development on the phone or at the site, she said.

“It’s been very upsetting,” she said. “When you’re an 83-year-old lady and you don’t have a roof over your head. I was depressed for a while.”

Koenig said her children offered her a place to stay, but after two-and-a-half months staying with one of her sons she knew Serenity Manor was no longer an option. As a result, she bought a condo at an Okotoks 50-plus building and has no intention of moving into Serenity Manor even if it is completed.

“I’m happy here,” she said.

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