More residential care beds coming.
News that Interior Health will be closing Sagebrush Lodge within the next two years has raised questions about the future of the jobs currently held by the facility's staff.
Interior Health announced last week that they had approved the development of 104 new residential care beds and 10 new assisted living units in Osoyoos.
Mayor John Slater said Sagebrush Lodge has been an integral part of the Osoyoos community since 1982 and staffs nearly 90 casual, part- and full-time employees.
There's no question it's a large payroll in the community, Slater said.
We also don't know how the new operation will work or what it will look like. Currently, there is no property big enough that is zoned for such a facility, so we will have to go through a public process to rezone land and the proponents will have to come to council to put forward a development proposal.rnHe added the announcement of more care beds coming to Osoyoos is not all good news, as there is a question about whether the new contractor will hire the same staff or pay the same wages and benefits to those employees.
Councillor Dick Flintoft, whose wife works at the facility part-time, said in two years time the Sagebrush Lodge will be closed.
Employees may apply to work in the new facility, but it will be entirely up to the new operator.rnHe added that no one knows much more at this time. He also said the closure would not affect his wife because she was semi-retired anyway. It would, however, affect many other employees who depend on their jobs for a living.
Interior Health called all the employees in and told them their jobs at Sagebrush Lodge are finished. This is devastating news and it creates a lot of tension and anxiety. People depend on these good-paying jobs to be able to stay in Osoyoos, Flintoft said.
He also wondered what other purpose the Sagebrush Lodge facility could possibly be used for.
Sagebrush Lodge Care Coordinator Karen Fleming referred all questions to Interior Health Acting Chief Operating Officer Chris Mazurkewich.
Some of the staff will be retiring, some may end up working at Sunnybank or the hospital in Oliver and others may go to work for the new facility. There will be opportunities for staff to move elsewhere, Mazurkewich said.
He added that Interior Health would be picking the owner of the new facility, who would in turn be involved with Interior Health on a contractual basis.
We won't be running the day-to-day opera-tions but will fund the facility and look at the overall policies.rnHe added Interior Health expects to put the tender out within the next two weeks, with another 28 to 36 months before the facility is built and up and running.
From our perspec-tive, we're excited about doubling the number of care beds in Osoyoos. With the growth in the south Okanagan, and with the aging senior population, we feel this will be a good development for Osoyoos.
Interior Health also will work closely with the staff at Sagebrush Lodge to mitigate anxiety, as we have done in the past. And over the next couple of years, we'll be looking at options for the use of the old facility, he said.
