Nearly six months after residents were forced to leave Leonora Hall in Highland Square, Marc Cook is looking ahead rather than back.
“When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade,” said Cook, a former resident who left Akron after the closure and eventually settled in Iowa.
The Leonora Hall and Francesca Residence property at the corner of North Portage Path and Edgerton Road is scheduled to be auctioned July 13 through July 15 via Ten-X, with an opening bid of $700,000.
The auction includes the connected building on the northeast corner of the property that housed members of the Daughters of Divine Charity, the religious order that owns the complex.
It marks the next chapter for the property after the nuns told residents last fall that it was no longer fiscally sustainable for them to manage the buildings and that they would close, forcing dozens of tenants to relocate.
Residents received a letter on Oct. 22 asking them to move out by Dec. 1.
“Not only were the residents surprised, but even the staff,” Cook said.
Many of the residents living in the semi-independent facility were in their 70s, 80s and 90s, he said, and struggled with the news.
“When you’re at a place and you’re that age … all of a sudden your life gets turned upside down,” Cook said.
A closer look at Highland Square
Interest wanes in effort to buy the property, keep residents in place
Senior Pastor Mike Murphy of Prevail Church at 133 Merriman Road said he became involved after Cook reached out to him. “My interest was to keep those 90-year-old residents from getting displaced,” Murphy said.
At the time, he said, he knew individuals who might have been willing to invest in the property and that keeping residents in place during a transition would have made the facility more attractive to potential buyers.
Murphy said he attempted to discuss the idea with representatives of the Daughters of Divine Charity, which is based in Staten Island, New York, but they did not return a phone call or a request for an in-person meeting.
That potential interest waned following the closure. After learning about the auction, Murphy said he would have needed an outside investor to move the idea forward. He said he did not have the financial means to purchase or operate the property on his own or through his church.
The Daughters of Divine Charity did not return phone calls for comment.
Property is potential redevelopment opportunity
Leonora Hall was built in 1946 by the Daughters of Divine Charity as a residence for women. The Catholic order was founded by Mother Franziska Lechner in Austria with a mission to provide safe housing and support for women living away from home.
Originally the Kerch Mansion, built in 1918, the Akron facility operated for decades as a semi-independent living residence offering meals and supportive services.
At the time of its closure, the residence housed about 30 residents, including staff, and charged about $1,000 to $1,100 a month, which included three meals a day, Cook said. More importantly, he said, it offered residents a sense of security.
“It was a place to feel secure, safe,” Cook said. “It allowed seniors to feel their independence.”
The property is now being marketed as a potential redevelopment opportunity. According to the listing on LoopNet, the site includes 139,362 square feet of space and has served various purposes over the years, including as Leonora Hall and later the Francesca Residence assisted-living facility.
As the property heads to auction, Cook said he hopes the next owner finds a way to continue serving the community.
“I hope someone buys it and provides a productive use to it,” he said, “whether it’s another senior living place or some type of community outreach center.”
