The president of Reading-based AMP Living Communities announced Thursday, Sept. 17, that he will shutter his personal care home business in Lebanon with an anticipated closure date of Nov. 17.
The personal care home at 25 S. 9th St. was known for many years as American House.
AMP president Deion Adams, doing business as Morris Pace West Personal Care Home (PCH), said in a letter shared Thursday with nearly 60 residents that, while it was a difficult decision, he was giving them 60-day formal notice of voluntary closure.
“AMP Living Communities was created to allow the residents of this facility to remain in their home while receiving affordable care and responsibly managed safe, peaceful and dignified environment,” Adams said in the letter, which was obtained by LebTown. “AMP serves residents who are frequently overlooked, undervalued and underserved.”
In the letter, Adams wrote that “the building’s age, unresolved building system problems, continuing operational demands, and resulting financial strain have made continued operation unsustainable for AMP.”
“The facility is presently operating with only one functioning boiler. The boiler system provides essential heat and hot water throughout the building. AMP has not received a documented, funded, and reliable plan demonstrating that adequate boiler capacity will be restored before winter,” he wrote. “AMP does not possess sufficient financial resources to assume responsibility for the substantial repair or replacement costs associated with the building’s aging infrastructure.”
Pastor Luis Hernandez, who owns the building, told LebTown in a phone interview that conversations with Adams’ legal counsel have failed. Hernandez said Adams has not paid monthly rent in the two years his business has occupied the building, and that the unpaid rent adds up to over $200,000.
Hernandez said that, after speaking to Adams’ lawyer, he believed the closure was happening because Adams does not want to pay the outstanding bills.
Hernandez also told LebTown that he, as the building owner, has started receiving past due notices for the building’s utilities, including a water bill totaling $20,000, among others. Questions emailed to Adams for additional comment were answered with the following written statement:
“Because some of your questions concern private contractual and property matters, I am not going to comment on those details at this time. This has been an extremely difficult decision. These residents have become family who we deeply love. Our focus now is on supporting our residents and families through an orderly transition that protects each resident’s safety, dignity, and choice, while coordinating with the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services and our community partners in Lebanon.”
The letter, which was also sent to Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) and Lebanon County officials, notes that “every reasonable effort to prevent this matter from reaching the point of closure” was made.
“We attempted to work with the owner of 25 South 9th Street to consider proposal alternatives that could have allowed the residents to remain in the building. However, based on the party’s prior working history, the unresolved allocation of financial and operational responsibilities in the absence of a sufficiently documented and funded plan for the building and could not responsibly accept the proposed arrangements,” Adams wrote.
Hernandez told LebTown his attorney informed Adams’ legal counsel that it’s his desire to keep the residents living there, and that he wants the home to be a personal care community for those individuals, including many who have lived there for decades.
He said he offered to pay all outstanding bills and asked Adams to continue managing the property until another personal care home provider can be secured.
“I already proposed that. We’re gonna pay all the bills. We propose that to his lawyer, and then help us and go,” Hernandez said. “I’m trying right now to stop the people, to stop them, to move the people. That’s what I’m trying. What we’re trying to do is maintain those people there to conserve their personal care.”
The letter notes that the business is closing because of the boiler situation.
“With winter approaching, I cannot in good conscience continue operating with only one functioning boiler and no reliable funded plan to restore the building’s boiler capacity. Although this decision is painful, I am confident that it is necessary to protect the health, safety, comfort and dignity of the residents,” Adams wrote.
Asked who is responsible for maintenance, Hernandez said he believes it is written into the contract that the tenant is responsible for repairs.
“I would have to talk to my lawyer again. But I think so, yeah, I think so,” Hernandez said when LebTown asked again if the tenant is responsible for boiler repairs. “They were responsible, (for) the utilities and everything there.”
LebTown reached out to Lebanon County officials as well as local U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs officials for comment since both agencies have clients living there.
LebTown spoke to Lebanon County’s Department of Mental Health/Intellectual Disabilities/Early Intervention (MH/ID/EI) and its Area Agency on Aging about this issue. Messages to the public affairs office of the Lebanon VA Medical Center had not received a response.
The announced closing is another chapter in the ongoing saga surrounding the former American House.
Despite a history of violations, American House was allowed to stay open during the appeal process following the revocation of its operating license by DHS, as reported by LebTown in August 2024.
Hernandez said he decided not to pursue an appeal. Personal care management was turned over to Morris Pace about two years ago.
MH/ID/EI administrator Holly Leahy noted that it was believed the various issues surrounding the PCH were being resolved.
“They had a lot of issues with licensing, but we thought that they were working through all of that, that they did not have any intentions to close and that they were doing everything they needed to keep it open,” Leahy told LebTown on Thursday. “So I have to say that this notice this morning of their voluntary closure came as quite a surprise this morning.”
Leahy asked to clear up misconceptions about her agency’s involvement in personal care homes.
“There’s so many rumors out in the community with regard to personal care homes. And I feel like you could really help to clear the air as to what they are,” Leahy said. “So, I think there’s a lot of confusion and the people believing that the county either owns the property or has responsibility for these properties or that we pay for everyone to live there. All of those things are incorrect. That is definitely not true.”
Neither agency has guardianship over its clients but they will assist in finding new homes. Leahy said, adding that residents are responsible for their own monthly rent. Leahy said there are 21 MH/ID/EI clients of the nearly 60 who live there.
Adrian Layser, administrator of the Lebanon County Area Agency on Aging, also said her department will help their clients if they request new living arrangements but isn’t charged with this duty since it does not have guardianship over them.
Leahy said of the 21 individuals at the residence, 18 are from Lebanon County, plus two from Lancaster and one from York. Layser did not have a figure for the number of county-based seniors living at the facility.
County administrator Jamie Wolgemuth told LebTown that individuals from outside Lebanon County will be referred to their home counties for placement, meaning local MH/ID/EI officials will be responsible for finding homes for the 18 residents from Lebanon County.
DHS spokesman Brandon Cwalina provided a written statement to LebTown that read:
“American House Personal Care Home notified PA DHS on September 17, 2026, that it is planning to voluntarily close effective November 17, 2026, citing financial considerations, and it will be working with the Lebanon County Ombudsman office and local Area Agency on Aging to help facilitate safe relocation options for its 59 current residents. Questions about documents and the specifics of the closure are better suited for American House Personal Care Home.”
Asked where the residents might be placed, Leahy said that remains unknown at this time, although it appears they will be moved outside of the county. Layser also cited a lack of local PCH housing capacity for seniors and said they most likely will have to move out of Lebanon County.
“These are individuals. These are not just names on a piece of paper. These are individuals that have lived there; some of the individuals at Morris Pace have been there since 1990,” Leahy said. “They’ve lived there most of their lives. This is their home. Lebanon County is their home. And it is extremely difficult. All of us are struggling with the humanity of this.”
Editor’s Note: Lebanon County MH/ID/EI does not have guardianship over its clients as previously reported in an earlier version of this story. LebTown regrets the error.
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James Mentzer is a freelance writer and lifelong resident of Pennsylvania. He has spent his professional career writing about agriculture, economic development, manufacturing and the energy and real estate industries, and is the county reporter and a features writer for LebTown. James is an outdoor...