Original Air Date: 10/2/13
By: WJAC Web Staff
CLEARFIELD COUNTY, Pa. -- The first step in rebuilding a Clearfield County senior living center destroyed by fire started on Tuesday. The initial phase of demolition was scheduled to 2 p.m. at Colonial Courtyard in Clearfield. The work involves removing part of the building to confirm the integrity of the facilitys slab base. Once those tests are completed, the building will be razed, clearing the way for construction of a new Colonial Courtyard. The senior center was gutted by fire on June 25, leaving 61 residents displaced.In a news release, Rick Irwin, president of IntegraCare, which owns Colonial Courtyard at Clearfield, said, When considering rebuilding, we are taking into account the needs of our residents prior to the fire as well as the current and future resident needs. We anticipate the design to include many modern amenities, while still possessing a warm and homelike feel.Lami Grubb Architects will prepare architectural design for the new structure. Irwin said he anticipates the new building will be similar in size to the original. As we are working on the design, we will continually be reaching out to local officials to ensure that we comply with all local ordinances and zoning requirements, Irwin said.The release stated that IntegraCare hopes to have an information office open by late October or early November so family members and previous residents can see architectural designs, room layouts and other features of the project. Of the residents who were displaced, some moved into IntegraCare Senior Living communities such as Colonial Courtyard at Tyrone and Colonial Courtyard at Bedford. Officials with IntegraCare said Colonial Courtyard at Clearfield staff are maintaining contact with the former residents, often visiting them in their new communities.Our residents are like part of our family, said Candy Shomo, executive director of Colonial Courtyard at Clearfield. Many of our staff members remained in contact with the residents, with some of those even driving an hour or more to visit them. We are excited to share the news that reconstruction is underway.Shomo said former residents have expressed an interest in returning to the rebuilt Colonial Courtyard at Clearfield.
