West Perth Council is trying to rally local support for an upcoming public hearing on the possible loss of long term care beds at Hillside Manor near Stratford.
Mayor Walter McKenzie says the potential for beds to be moved out of the area is very troubling considering the growing senior population, and the municipality is going to try and make a stand against moving the beds to urban centres like London.
“We’re saying the formula is flawed, because they’re saying we’re over-bedded in Perth County, but with the amount of seniors that we have and the baby-boomers coming up and getting older, I don’t think that’s the case.”
Hillside Manor, west of Stratford, is largely privately owned, and that likely means that in terms of moving beds, there may not be much the municipality can do if the private owners wish to move their resources elsewhere.
Mayor McKenzie says they would prefer to see beds remain locally to serve the growing senior population.
“It’s a concern, not only that they’re being displaced, because if the beds do go to London, that’s an inconvenience for anyone, not only if they’re a senior, but also their younger family members. It would be a hassle to travel to London all the time for visitations.”
West Perth is not happy with the public hearing that was granted either, which is taking place in Mitchell on Tuesday, June 20th, for just 1 hour, from 12:30pm until 1:30pm.
Councillors say that such a big issue was only granted 1 hour in the middle of a work day, and they’re rallying as many people as possible to show up that day.