Southern Rural closes deal on Lawrence Place

By Staff
Jonathan Willis
A new assisted living facility will open in Russellville within the month.
Southern Rural Health Care Consortium reached an agreement to purchase Lawrence Place Assisted Living over the weekend.
It will be the first time Southern Rural Health Care has operated such a facility, but the company does have eight family health clinics throughout the region as well as an extensive background in home heath care.
The Alabama Department of Public Health closed Lawrence Place on Feb. 25, more than a month after the facility received a health rating of 38 out of a possible 100 points.
Former owner Roger Jacobson had reached an agreement with the state to sale Lawrence Place by March 7, but another visit by health inspectors resulted in its closing before that deadline.
Southern Rural Health Care tried to purchase the facility before its closing but could not come to terms on an agreement with Jacobson or the state before then.
They now have 30 days from the day Lawrence Place closed to get it re-opened.
Company officials said the building will undergo a massive renovation project during that time, but will be ready to accept residents within that period.
The new facility will be named Southern Manor Assisted Living.
Southern Rural Health Care Consortium Executive Director Margaret Lovett said discrepancies in the health rating were not due to the building itself, however it will be renovated with new flooring, painting, lighting and other cosmetic changes.
"We want it to have a home-like feel to it," Lovett said. "We are going to do some outside work and make it appealing to the neighborhood. It's going to get a complete facelift.
"We want people to recognize it as their home."
The residence will be staffed with 10 to 12 people around the clock and all will undergo thorough background checks before they are hired.
Barry Buchanan, business development associate with Southern Rural, said the facility would open in stages with about 10 new residents at a time.
"We will be starting an assisted living facility from the ground up," Buchanan said. "It's a new day here and everything we do will be according to what we are required to do and what is best for the residents there."
Company officials said that Southern Manor would have an activities director, a certified cook, a beautician and a functioning chapel for all denominations to use.
But, Buchanan said, despite extensive remodeling and additional services, Southern Manor will maintain lower than market costs.
"It will be affordable for almost everyone," he said. "It is something that people here will be proud of. Franklin County is Southern Rural's home and we want to offer the people here a good, affordable facility."