The court deadline for sale of Seton Medical Center in Daly City has passed and San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa says the seller and buyer must meet.
“It’s the fourth quarter and we’re on the 1-yard line,” Canepa said. “The more it’s delayed, the more there’s an uncertainty.”
The sale was supposed to close Dec. 5.
Canepa has offered to work with seller Verity Health System and potential buyer the KPC Group to meet about the sale.
“They need to sit down and talk,” Canepa said.
The delay may be about the price of the 350-bed medical center, Canepa said.
“We are disappointed that KPC did not close the sale as ordered by the court,” Verity CEO Rich Adcock said in an email Tuesday.
“The boards, leadership teams and our professional advisors are working tirelessly to determine the next steps and best available outcomes,” Adcock said.
The medical nonprofit Verity Health operates Seton and five other hospitals in the state. Verity filed for bankruptcy in 2018.
In a federal court filing Tuesday, an affiliate of KPC stated that Verity has not met conditions of the court-ordered Dec. 5 deadline. The KPC affiliate said in the filing that it would not be coerced into a premature closing.
Daly City Vice Mayor Juslyn Manalo said Seton is the city’s largest employer.
“We need to do all we can to save the hospital,” she said. “We really need to find a solution.”
Canepa said the medical center is prime property and fears the delayed sale could lead to plans for commercial development of the site.
The seller should understand that the medical center is to remain a hospital, Canepa said.
Daly City has approved a resolution supporting the Seton Medical Center’s land use and zoning for a hospital.
That doesn’t end the county supervisor’s concern about condominiums or commercial development on the 33-acre property.
“It would be difficult,” Canepa said. “It can still happen.”
New York hedge fund BlueMountain Capital bought six hospitals, including Seton Medical Center, from Daughters of Charity in 2015.
The sale included conditions to ensure services set by then-attorney general Kamala Harris. State law requires the attorney general to approve purchases when for-profit companies buy nonprofits.
Verity Health was formed after BlueMountain reached a deal with cash-strapped Daughters of Charity for the hospitals.
The hospital in Daly City was built in 1965.
(2) comments
Canepa is worried the property will be sold, developed commercially and a dreaded Chick-fi-A will spring up in his district !
Told you so. Now here comes the supervisor from district 5 who is going to try to shove this disaster onto the county taxpayers. We will be watching you Canepa, county residents don't want to buy this seismically challenged building with all the unfunded pensions that come with it.
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