The Harborside retirement community renamed The Sinclair as part of $28M makeover

The Harborside retirement community in Port Washington, which was purchased out of bankruptcy in May, has a new name and plans $28 million in renovations.

The new owner, Focus Healthcare Partners LLC, announced on Wednesday that the facility will be called The Sinclair at Port Washington.

The new moniker is a reference to novelist Sinclair Lewis, who lived in the village from April 1914 to late December 1915 and commuted to Manhattan on the Long Island Rail Road. He and his first wife, Grace, lived at 20 Vanderventer Ave., then the site of a shingled cottage, according to Newsday archives.

In 1930, Lewis became the first American to win the Nobel Prize for Literature, largely for his satirical portrayal of middle-class life in the Midwest in such novels as “Babbitt." 

Focus spokesman Phil Walotsky said in an interview Wednesday that the Chicago-based private equity firm chose the new name “as a nod to local history, to celebrate Port Washington and the history it has.”

This is the second name change since the retirement community opened in 2010 as The Amsterdam at Harborside. It then became The Harborside after an ownership change and years of financial problems.

The community was once home to about 350 residents, but three bankruptcy filings in the past 10 years led some to leave and made it difficult to recruit new residents.

Walotsky said about 60 people live there now — the same number as in May, when Focus paid $86 million to buy the property.

As a condition of the sale, the dementia care unit, nursing home and assisted living units were shut down, which meant couples were separated if one spouse needed more care and had to live in another facility. Only independent living apartments are available.

However, Focus "is actively planning" to resume dementia care and assisted living once the necessary licenses are obtained from the state Department of Health and the building renovations are scheduled, Walotsky said.

In the past 2½ months, Focus has installed Chelsea Senior Living, which manages four other retirement communities on Long Island, to oversee operations and purchased vehicles to provide transportation for residents. There's also a new chef and the number of meals has gone from one per day to three.

Fran Schmidt, a longtime resident, said she likes the new changes.

"A fresh sense of excitement is in the air," Schmidt said. "The new ownership has introduced a variety of activities, and in a short period, we've established a residents' council and several new committees, making us feel truly heard."

Focus co-founder Curt Schaller, in announcing the name change, said The Harborside's hefty entrance fee has been dropped in favor of monthly rent only. He said he wants to build "a financially flexible, service-rich community."