By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
A major sign of how things have changed for The Kenney in the past 10 years: Its five-acre landscaped campus is to be certified as an arboretum – the campus that was once to be sliced and diced for an ultimately disastrous redevelopment/expansion plan.
Eventually – in mid-2024 – West Seattle’s oldest senior-living complex went into receivership. It’s still there, but its management insists things have turned around big time.
Several readers have asked recently what’s up with The Kenney, with no followups here since our 2024 reports about new management followed by receivership. In advance of a community open house they’re planning next week, we went to The Kenney (7125 Fauntleroy Way SW) Tuesday morning to talk with executive director Brian Swope – who’s been there three years – and admissions/marketing director Cindy Serrano – who’s been there six weeks.
Both tenures are a blink compared to The Kenney’s long history, founded toward the start of the 20th century; that history recently brought in a letter from the Washington Secretary of State’s Office with congratulations on the founding corporation’s quasquicentennial – 125th year anniversary – one of only 22 corporations still in business in the state after that long.
There was a point a few years ago that the odds of The Kenney reaching that milestone appeared low. The number of residents was running low back then too – we noted 66 in a July 2024 report, and now, they told us, they’re approaching 90, which they say is 75 percent occupancy and “steady growth.”
SAK Healthcare is still the management company – one that was brought in as a specialist in rescuing “distressed” facilities – and still the court-appointed receiver. The Chicago-based firm handles other properties and that enables The Kenney to “capitalize on economies of scale,” among other things, Swope says.
The staff numbers 65 and one unique aspect of that, Swope notes, is that none of the roles are filled by agency-provided help. “Stabilizing our staff has been a challenge … in 2023, a third of the staff were agency staff.” That was changed by “aggressive recruiting,” he says. Back then, even the director of nursing was from an agency. That was the result, he said, of “disruption” on the watch of the East Coast organization that ran The Kenney for nine years before SAK, Heritage Ministries.
What we also have learned – though not until we looked up documents in the receivership case’s court files after our visit – is that The Kenney was put up for sale last year. The documents we read are quarterly reports from the receiver; last spring and summer’s reports mention that the firm Raymond James was engaged to market and sell the property, and the most recent report, filed for the last quarter of the year, says, “The receiver continues to market the facility and the property for sale to interested parties.”
But there’s no “for sale” sign out front and no mention that we could find online. Instead, there’s an A-board sign on the street offering “Tours Today,” and the managers tout longevity – beyond the facility’s century-plus history, they note it’s prevalent on the 65-person staff, saying some have been there 30 years. “A lot of longevity,” Serrano says.
“In the industry, it’s common to have (up to) 45 percent turnover rate – we have 10 percent,” Swope says.
“That speaks to the culture,” suggests Serrano.
Speaking of culture, they say they’ve continued amplifying what’s available for the residents, too.
With the future arboretum designation, they have residents building signage and posts in an on-site woodshop, and residents to be trained as docents. It will be open by appointment, and they’re hopeful that will include school field trips, as well as partnerships with programs like Landscape Horticulture at South Seattle College (WSB sponsor).
The Kenney also has a singing group that “goes to other communities too.” They offer transportation for residents to get to practical destinations like health care and shopping, and recreational destinations too.
Back to the basics. What about the physical condition of this four-building campus where some parts are more than a century old? The reports filed with the court did not reveal anything notable, and Swope said, “We fix things every single day” but “every part of the campus is occupied” and “fully functional.”
For almost nine years now, since they ceased offering skilled-nursing care, The Kenney has been a senior-living complex instead of a Continuing Care Retirement Community, offering independent living, assisted living, and memory care. “And we participate in hospice,” Swope adds. As a senior-living complex, he says, they no longer require “a significant entry fee,” just what Serrano describes as a “smaller community fee.” Their residents’ average age is in the 80s, they say, reflecting a general trend that people are moving into senior communities later in life.
All in all, the managers say growth is steady – the receiver reports in court files verify that – and things are continuing to improve. “We’ve come a long way,” Swope says, who adds that he came out of retirement for the job and wants to “see it through.”
“It’s a wonderful place that needed somebody on its side,” adds Serrano.
They repeat what we heard a year and a half ago – that The Kenney wants to be a more active part of the larger community again.
One way they’re doing that is by being home to a satellite location of Lake Washington Physical Therapy-West Seattle (WSB sponsor), with physical therapist Alison Read on-site not only for residents but also for community members. “Having in-house physical therapy is big,” Swope enthuses. (You can book an appointment here.)
OPEN HOUSE: The Kenney is welcoming visitors 2 pm-3:30 pm next Wednesday, March 11, not just to show off its campus, but also to offer education about senior living: “We’ll start at 2 pm with a simple 30-minute presentation that breaks down the different levels of senior living, including Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Memory Care. The goal is to make the process easier to understand and less overwhelming. Afterward, we’ll offer a community overview, time for questions, and raffle prizes.” They promise “no pressure, just helpful information.”
FUTURE ARBORETUM: They’re expecting to be a stop on this year’s West Seattle Garden Tour (June 28).
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