Harbor House opening held up by occupancy inspection

The opening of a planned assisted living and senior housing center has been pushed back by a couple of weeks, its owners say.

Shannon Bosdell said a Certification of Occupancy from the state is needed before Harbor House can open its doors to residents. First announcing the venture back in December, he and co-developer Daniel Blake were expecting an April 1 start date.

“It got pushed out by a week, week and a half,” Bosdell said.

Formerly the Sourdough Lodge, once certified, the Peninsula Avenue facility will be able to accommodate five assisted living rooms and up to 11 rooms for senior housing. Bosdell has explained one of the benefits of the arrangement is it will allow for couples with mixed care level needs to continue living together.

The site will have a combination of single- and double-occupancy rooms available, depending on preference. The singular units will be accommodated by a large community room and cafeteria, which Bosdell explained would operate like a restaurant.

Harbor House will have both a recreational director and registered nurse on staff to attend to residents, and Bosdell said transportation services would be available to take residents into town each day.

The Planning and Zoning Commission approved the conditional use permit application needed to open the assisted living center back in January, following a pair of hearings that were at times contentious. Nearby neighbors had expressed concern that the new usage would be disruptive to residents, causing increased traffic, on-street parking, unattended pets, and the potential nuisance of nighttime ambulance calls.

The commission took some of these concerns to heart, adding several provisions to the permit that would address access and parking concerns. Since then, Bosdell reported the care home has gotten its state licenses and certifications in order, save that for occupancy, which requires approval from the state Fire Marshal’s Office.

“We’ve waited two months to get to the head of the line,” he said.

Tentatively the opening is set for mid-April. At the moment, about half of the rooms have been booked, with nine residents signed up.

The addition of the new facility could help alleviate a need for senior housing in the community. A housing needs survey conducted by Wrangell Cooperative Association in 2015 found the issue to be one of the community’s top priorities.