Trustees of the Eastern Star Masonic Retirement Community in southeast Denver are looking to sell the property after an explosion shuttered part of the campus this spring, though officials say the move is years in the making.
Eastern Star’s governing board announced the decision Tuesday on Facebook, describing it as an “extremely hard and reluctant decision” that was not based solely on the March 12 explosion and fire that critically injured at least seven people when construction workers hit a power line in the Robert Russell building.
The explosion displaced 87 residents in assisted-living and memory-care units, who still had not been able to return home as of late April, according to the organization’s social media.
“It has become evident in recent months the viability of our operation is being stressed,” the Board of Trustees said in a statement on Facebook. “The decreased occupancy levels since COVID, increased operational costs and increasing regulations has become a problem for smaller operations.”
Eastern Star officials are at the beginning of the sale process and do not have a timeline, according to the post.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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