The sign at the entrance decorated for the “Valley Goes Pink,” a breast cancer awareness initiative, in 2015.
DERBY — Now that bankruptcy has forced Birmingham Health Center at 210 Chatfield St. to surrender its nursing home license to the state, what’s next for the property remains unclear.
“Obviously, we want to see it become a valuable asset again,” said Andrew Baklik, Derby Mayor Rich Dziekan’s chief of staff.
But Baklik acknowledged there’s only so much city government can do.
Local governments can’t dictate how private property is used, but the city can point potential investors to the property through Carmen DiCenso, Derby’s economic development liaison.
The 110-bed nursing home officially closed Friday (July 20), according to a union spokeswoman. About 100 people lost their jobs. Residents were sent to other facilities.
The move followed years of financial hardship for Spectrum Healthcare, the company that owned Birmingham Health Center.
The company entered bankruptcy in 2012, announced a debt restructuring plan, but filed for bankruptcy again in 2016.
Baklik said there was a big behind-the-scenes push with local, state, and federal elected officials to get the union and management at the company to hash out an agreement that would keep the place open, “but those efforts were for naught.”
The effort to keep the doors open included Bill Purcell, president and CEO of The Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce.
“The Chamber joined with the Derby Mayor, our Valley Legislative Delegation, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro and Patrick Charmel, President of Griffin Health in doing all that we could to save this facility from closure,” Purcell said.
After the closing was announced, the chamber hosted a job fair in June to help those laid off find new jobs.
There appeared to be a skeleton crew still working at the facility this week.
The Valley Indy left messages with the owner and the company’s attorney Tuesday.
Spectrum previously closed the Hilltop Health nursing home on Ford Street in Ansonia in 2013.
The Ansonia property remains vacant, something Derby officials don’t want to see happen here.
The bankruptcy case is still pending in federal court. The nursing home’s attorney filed a motion to wrap up the case since the facility is closed, but there’s no word on when a judge will issue a decision on that motion.
Meanwhile, Baklik said Derby Public Schools Superintendent Matthew Conway floated an idea for 210 Chatfield St. which would see the building used as a school for students who have been expelled from regular classrooms.
Baklik said the idea was to open the facility to students from Derby and surrounding towns.
Conway wasn’t available for comment Tuesday.
People who use an active Ansonia community page wondered whether Griffin Hospital would be taking over 210 Chatfield St., possibly for excess parking.
But Christian Meagher, a hospital spokesman, said the hospital isn’t looking at the property.
“Griffin Hospital currently has no interest in the property. We have a long-standing relationship with Birmingham Health Center and we’ve been allowed to temporarily use some of the parking spaces for off-site parking,” he said in an email.
Sheila O’Malley, Ansonia’s economic development director, said finding new uses for old nursing homes can be challenging because of building size and zoning restrictions. The Ford Street nursing home in Ansonia is 47,000 square feet, O’Malley said, three times the size of Ansonia City Hall.
She said assisted living facilities or age-restricted housing are options for possible future uses. A new broker is marketing the Ford Street facility. It’s being offered for $3.5 million.
Marshall Lane Manor, another nursing home in Derby, closed in 2015. It is being converted into a dormitory for international high school students attending area private schools.
Purcell, the chamber of commerce leader, said he hopes lightning strikes twice.
“Our hope is that the property will find a new lease on life, just as the former Marshall Lane Manor has across town,” he said in an email.
