Eagles Manor back to local management

After going through a difficult summer and fall, Eagles Manor is again completely under complete local control.

As of Dec. 31, Tamarack Property Management Co. has terminated its contract for the Havre Eagles Manor, site manager Karen Granger said. Operations of Eagles Manor are back under control of the Eagles Manor Board of Havre Eagles Aerie 166 and the site manager.

As far as the process goes, Granger said, all decisions will go from her and to the board.

"We are hands-on again," Granger said. "We can make our own decisions, not that we couldn't make the decisions with them, but they did the day-to-day management."

Tamarack had been involved with the Eagles Manor since May 2017, Granger said, adding that the management company was hired to help resolve some issues about the retirement home's using federal Section 8 subsidized housing and some other issues.

In June, the Havre City Council approved making a $125,000 loan to Affiliated Developers Inc. to use in repairs and renovations to the facility, contingent on the company purchasing the manor.

In the meantime, residents complained of failed air conditioning, putting temperatures in some rooms of the facility over 100 degrees. Granger and the manor staff worked to allay the heat as much as possible.

In October, Affiliated Developers, which received nearly $4 million in tax credits to help purchase and rehabilitate Oakwood Village apartments in Havre, said it was canceling the plans to purchase the manor.

The next major concern was about the boiler heating system in the manor not working. Tamarack hired local contractors for a six-week process to get the heating system working again the first week of October.

Granger said that with management returning to the local level, the future is wide open, adding that a board meeting is scheduled for Feb. 21 to work out the details of the change.

She said people can now work directly with her if there are any issues.

"To be hands-on, we really know what's going on," she said.

Eagles Manor is a not-for-profit organization for tenants 55 and older and people with handicaps or disabilities are welcome, Granger said. he manor is an adult independent living facility and is not a retirement home or an assisted living facility, although A Plus Health Care Inc. and Angel Care LLC are available for tenants to hire independently.

The manor has 91 units, with some leased out such as to the beauty salon and massage therapist. Others are used as for the kitchen and dining room and for activity rooms such as an exercise room and craft room.

Some of the rooms are being rehabilitated and remodeling and can't be rented out. These rooms are not counted as vacant rooms, she said. Granger added that out of the 91 rooms 72 are marketable units.

Of those, 32 are general rentals and 40 have federal subsidy assistance through Section 8 available, which provides a good, safe environment for elderly people, or people with disabilities, who live off of fixed incomes, she said.

Granger said occupancy is up, with 76 percent of the rooms occupied and three more people about to move in. Granger said two of those are market renters and one is applying for Section 8.

Eagles Manor has been open since 1974, she said, adding that over the years there have been ups and downs with occupancy.

"It's very much like a family here," she added, "so they are all my family. That's how I feel and I'm very proprietary of that."

She added that her top priority is to make sure that the residents at the Eagles Manor have a place to live and are comfortable.

With the termination of the contract with Tamarack, the Eagles Manor board and staff will, from start to finish, be doing most of the planning and work on their own.

"(Tamarack) did a lot of good for us," Granger added.

She said she and the board know where they are at and where they can go and what they can do.

The board is not entertaining any offers from managers or purchasers at this time, Granger added.

She said people are welcome to visit the facility.