Management at The Village at Gainesville retirement community removed packets of information about Fortress Investment Group, the organization’s new buyer, and follow-up questions regarding the sale that were distributed in residential mail cubbies on campus.  

The distribution and subsequent removal of the packets followed a series of meetings held on Sep. 18 for residents, their family members and friends to ask The Village and Fortress representatives about the property purchase and potential changes ahead for residents. 

Fortress is a global investment company based in New York with 68% of its shares controlled by Mubadala Capital, an investment group owned by the Abu Dhabi government. The Village is currently still owned and operated by not-for-profit SantaFe Healthcare until the transfer of a HUD loan is finalized, effectively flipping the retirement community into for-profit status.  

The purchase continues a trend for Fortress, which has invested in senior living communities since its founding in 1998. It currently owns ChampionsGate near Orlando, as well as communities branded under Sonata in Windermere, Coconut Creek, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach and Vero Beach.   

On Sep. 20, two days after The Village identified Fortress as the buyer, around 100 stapled packets appeared in several different residential building mail cubbies on campus. Each packet contained a copy of the Fortress Wikipedia page, an article from Private Equity Stakeholder Project on the growing presence of private equity in senior living, and a list of nine questions addressing the private equity purchase of The Village. 

Within 24 hours of circulation, the packets were confiscated and replaced with a memo from Rebecca Catalanotto, regional executive director of The Village. The memo notified residents that management knew information had been distributed, and that “the mass distribution of this memo is against our guest policy, tenancy agreement and is not permitted.” 

Catalanotto did not respond to a request for comment about the confiscation or about a community meeting called for Nov. 25.  

In her memo, Catalanotto wrote that The Village understands “this is a time of change, and with uncertainty, can come fear and anxiety,” and that they’re available to address any fears and concerns.  

“We have worked hard to earn your trust over the years and are committed to continuing and protecting the great sense of community we have collectively created,” Catalanotto wrote. “Please be mindful of your friends and neighbors and their desire to live peacefully.” 

Catalanotto told residents the packets violated the community guest policy, which is cited in the Resident Handbook, a resource available to residents on The Village’s app.  

The full guest policy published in the handbook states the following:  

“Residents are invited and encouraged to have their guests on campus. Please note that children under age 18 are not permitted to use the fitness equipment in the Tower Club Fitness Center or Vitality and Fitness at Center Point.” 

Catalanotto’s memo did not specify why the packet of information violated the tenancy agreement. 

Resident responses in regard to The Village’s buyout and the confiscated packets have been mixed. According to one resident, some in the community are choosing to “tend [their] gardens and play with [their] grandkids” instead of worrying about the sale. Others have concerns but want to remain off the record in fear of retribution from management. 

The Village resident Terry Morrow currently serves on the Resident Advisory Forum (RAF) Executive Committee and is slated to be its president next year. The RAF is a voluntary group of residents who serve as a go-between for residents and The Village management. When residents found the packets of information and questions about Fortress in their cubbies, Morrow heard about them first-hand. 

“Quite a few people saw them,” he said. “But again, they were nothing. Most of the information was from Wikipedia, which is not a source anybody uses. But somebody spent a lot of money printing them.” 

He said many residents do not have qualms about the sale to Fortress, which is expected to close by the end of the year or first of 2025, but he also acknowledged concerns.  

“People just are so upset,” he said. “Most people worry their rent will go up, but there’s no evidence of that at all. Who knows. But I don’t have any concern…What I tell people is, ‘You’re renters. It’s no different than renting an apartment.’” 

Morrow said he didn’t think residents would have as much contact with Fortress as they will The Village’s management team, which will remain the same through the transition that he called “a sign of the times.” 

“Management is staying the same, and they’ll have a lot of contact with residents,” he said. “So, we shall see… We’ll all survive [and] have happy times.” 

In the Sept. 28 edition of The Village’s Weekly memo updating residents about goings-on at the retirement community, Morrow and the four other members of the RAF Executive Committee authored a statement addressing the sale and how residents should “take a positive approach to the pending sale of The Village!” 

The statement said that even though SantaFe Healthcare is selling all their assets as they go out of business, “We, of the RAF Executive Committee, believe Rebecca has done an excellent job, and support their decision to choose Fortress Investment Group. Let us look forward to the planned improvements and give them a chance to show us that we can continue to be ‘the best of the best!’ in Gainesville and in all of Florida.”