Back at Marian Hall, Whatmore said the only visible signs of deterioration are the cracks in the outdoor swimming pool which started showing up three years ago and were not repaired. “It looks like Beirut to people who look on the pool and see (the cracking walls) from their windows,” he said.
Whatmore admits if the residence is eventually sold and destined to be torn down to make way for million-dollar family homes, those still living there will be helpless.
“We don’t have much in the way of rights, except an extension of maybe six months, before they kick us out,” said Whatmore, who has a 32-year-old daughter and a 31-year-old son.
He also points out that the large wooded area around Marian Hall is the last remaining piece of property left for development in the Montreal suburb of Beaconsfield.
Whatmore wants the Quebec government to help to end the uncertainty the seniors at Marian Hall are facing.
“The government is going to spend millions trying to relocate these people. Why don’t they just step in and say: “‘We’ll buy the building and take care of them’?” Attempts to reach the administrators of the Griffith-McConnell and Marian Hall residences by telephone were unsuccessful.
Keywords: housing, homes, costs
