Monmouth County has sold two care centers that officials said have been losing millions of dollars each year. The John L. Montgomery Care Center, Freehold Township, and the Geraldine L. Thompson Care Center, Wall Township, have been sold to private owners.
On Oct. 20, the county held three public auctions — one for the Montgomery care center, one for the Thompson care center and one for both centers.
The auction came seven months after the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders voted to permit the county administration to move forward with the privatization of the care centers.
On Oct. 22, the freeholders voted 5-0 to approve and accept a bid to sell the Montgomery care center to Allaire Healthcare Group for $17.4 million and 5-0 to approve and accept a bid to sell the Thompson care center to Preferred Care Holdings, LLC, for $15 million. Each sale was awarded to the entity that was the highest bidder for a care center at the auction two days earlier.
The freeholders voted 5-0 to reject a combination bid for both facilities.
Freeholder Director Gary J. Rich said the successful bidders must operate the facilities as nursing homes for at least 10 years and provide a job interview to all county employees at the two care centers.
The transfer of the facilities to their new owners will take place no later than Dec. 31 and must be approved by the New Jersey Department of Health, according to a press release from the county.
Seven bidders participated in three public auctions: one auction for the John L. Montgomery Care Center, one auction for the Geraldine L. Thompson Care Center and one auction for the two care centers together.
The bidders were: 2350 LLC for Thompson; Preferred Care Holdings for Thompson, Montgomery and the combination of the two; Homestead Group of New Jersey for Thompson, Montgomery and the combination of the two; Altitude Health Services for Thompson, Montgomery and the combination of the two; Jersey Holdings LLC for Thompson, Montgomery and the combination of the two; Allaire Healthcare Group for Thompson, Montgomery and the combination of the two; and David Gross for Thompson and the combination of the two.
Bidding for the Montgomery care center started at $7.25 million and the highest bidder was Allaire Healthcare Group for $17.4 million.
Bidding for the Thompson care center started at $7.25 million and the highest bidder was Preferred Care Holdings, LLC, for $15 million.
Bidding for the combination of the Thompson and Montgomery care centers started at $16,222,050 and the highest bidder was Allaire Healthcare Group for $27.4 million.
Monmouth County personnel in attendance at the auction, which was held in Freehold Township, included Monmouth County Counsel Andrea Bazer. David Weinstein of Archer and Greiner, Haddonfield, conducted the proceedings and Joe Bodnar of Bodnar’s Auction, Edison, was the auctioneer.
The Montgomery care center is a 174- bed facility that offers geriatric care services and specializes in long-term care services for residents with neurological impairments that include multiple sclerosis, significant developmental disabilities, and severe brain and spinal cord injuries, according to the press release.
The Thompson care center is a 135-bed facility that specializes in long-term living for the elderly with a strong history of caring for the infirm and elderly of Monmouth and Ocean counties since the mid-1920s, the press release said.