A strong show of support for keeping Rockwood Terrace Retirement Home in Durham open.
People packed Grey County council chambers in opposition to the facility's possible closure. A consultant's report commissioned by Grey County shows it would be cost effective to move the 100 beds and residents at Rockwood to Grey Gables in Markdale.
West Grey Councillor Carol Lawrence speaks for the people opposed to the move. She wants Grey County council to consider more than dollars and cents.
"They need to consider the impact on the residents and their families, the impact on the communities because both those homes, Markdale and Durham, they've become part of the fabric of the towns," says Lawrence.
Grey County Warden Al Barfoot says it was never council's intention to disregard the community impact on closing Rockwood. Council passed a motion directing staff to prepare a report addressing those issues.
Barfoot hopes council will decide by the end of the year at least the direction the county is headed in terms of long term care facilities, bearing in mind it will up to the provincial government to approve whatever is ultimately decided.
The province has said there will be no new long term care beds in the province, despite an aging population. It wants the current number of beds redistributed. That likely means combining smaller facilities into larger ones.
