Château Dollard & Château Royal not the only insolvent seniors residences in related corporation

By Robert Frank

www.thesuburban.com

Château Royal and Château Dollard are each, in turn, owned by a federal numbered company, 4178092 Canada Inc., which is on the verge of being dissolved.

Federal government records list Zanzibaran-Canadian chartered accountant Amir Kassam—the president of both Château Dollard and of Château Royal—as the sole director of 4178092 Canada Inc., which owns both residences.

According to Industry Canada, although 4178092 Canada Inc. remains on its roster of active Canadian corporations, the company is pending dissolution for “non-compliance”. Industry Canada has no record of an annual meeting of the corporation since 2008, and reports its annual filings as “overdue” since 2009. The company was incorporated federally in 2003.

Amir Kassam and Bhaloo Rahim—who serves as corporate secretary of Château Dollard and Château Royal—are both directors of Toronto property firm Liberty Assisted Living Inc., which runs residences elsewhere in Ontario and Quebec.

As The Suburban went to press, it remained unclear whether there are any direct ownership connections between Dollard des Ormeaux’ troubled seniors residences and those belonging to Liberty Assisted Living, a company that also owns eldercare centres in deep financial straits.

Liberty Assisted Living comptroller Gregory Goutis acknowledged that one year ago there “had been irregularities in meeting payroll” of 38 employees at one of his firm’s long-term care facilities—known as La Chaumière—in Lakeshore, Ontario, a booming town of 35,000 near Windsor, with a large Franco-Ontarian population.

According to Canadian Auto Workers local 2458 president Bruce Dickie, the employees, who were paid irregularly after March 2010 and not at all after January 2011, were “ecstatic” when Calgary based Meyers, Norris, Penny was appointed as receiver and agreed to pay their outstanding salaries.

“This group of workers should be applauded for their commitment to caring for the residents,” said CAW president Ken Lewenza.

Among its many debts, the firm owed more than $100,000 in back pay to its staff and some $280,000 to the town of Lakeshore—an amount uncannily similar to the debt owed to the town of Dollard des Ormeaux.