NEW CASTLE No residents of nursing home remain

Only eight employees remain in the building.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR NEW CASTLE BUREAU
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- The last of the residents at Hill View Manor, Lawrence County's nursing home, left last week, and the number of employees continues to dwindle.
Commissioner Ed Fosnaught said two patients left Thursday and the last one left Friday.
"It was a terribly sad day. Just saying goodbye to the people who worked there was emotional," Fosnaught said.
Susan Quimby, county human resources director, said all but eight of the 120 employees have been laid off.
The billing office staff, a maintenance person, the nursing supervisor, the dietary supervisor and a few other nurses remain.
Quimby said the nurses and dietary supervisor are going through inventory and sending unused items back to suppliers. She said the food is being sent to the county jail. The nurses and the dietary manager are expected to be laid off next week, she added.
It's unclear how long the billing department and maintenance person will remain working.
Fosnaught said commissioners intend to continue heating the building and making sure nothing breaks.
What's next?
The future of the building and grounds, located on Pa. Route 65, remains unclear.
Commissioners decided to close the facility last year after determining it could not support itself financially. The institution had been self-supporting until there was a sharp decline in residents after a failed attempt to sell it to private buyers in 2003.
Fosnaught, who was opposed to the sale and closing, said he has fond memories of Hill View Manor and called its closing the "end of an era."
"Hill View Manor filled an important niche in this county. When someone had nowhere else to go, we would take them, and the cost was no issue," Fosnaught said.
The commissioner noted that the last few residents were difficult to place in other nursing homes because they had special needs.
cioffi@vindy.com