LEWISTOWN — For more than five decades, Eagles Manor has served as a cornerstone of senior housing in Lewistown, offering a place for older residents to live independently while still having access to meals, staff, and a safe environment. As the building ages, both residents and management say the challenges of maintaining the facility are becoming more visible, underscoring how critical the building remains to the community.
Aneesa Coomer reports from Lewistown - watch:
Constructed in the early 1970s, Eagles Manor was designed to bridge the gap between living at home and assisted care. Residents must be at least 65 years old, and for many in Fergus County, it represents one of the only intermediate housing options for seniors.
“There is no other place in Lewistown for seniors that are not ready for assisted living or they can't live at home,” says Nancy Wilson, whose sister lived at Eagles Manor for more than four years. “ So this place is really a great place, but lately it hasn't been taken care of.”
Over time, residents say the wear on the building has become harder to ignore. Heating, air conditioning, elevators, and plumbing have all required attention, and residents say those issues can directly affect daily routines.
One recent example has been a lack of hot water for some residents, an issue that several say has lasted for weeks.
“This will be the fourth week with no hot water. None,” says Terry Alexander, who has lived at Eagles Manor for six years. “Imagine taking a cold shower every morning when you’re paying rent to live in a place.”
Alexander says the conditions mark a noticeable change from when he first moved in.
“It was really a nice place when I was here six years ago,” he says. “But now it’s just running downhill.”
Residents say ongoing issues can also affect whether people choose to move in or stay, a concern for a building that relies on rent to cover operating costs.
“You can’t have the income if you don’t have the residents,” says Jerry Van Haur, a part-time resident who stays at Eagles Manor during the winter.
Van Haur says declining occupancy creates a cycle that is difficult to reverse.
“If people keep leaving because things don’t work, then you don’t have the income to fix anything,” he says.
Despite their concerns, residents consistently emphasize their connection to Eagles Manor and their desire to see it preserved.
“It’s vital to this community,” Wilson says. “It’s a good building. The rooms are nice. There’s lots of things that are positive.”
Management says the challenges residents are experiencing reflect the realities of maintaining a large, aging facility in a rural community.
Ryan Mammen, the manager of Eagles Manor says repairs often take time because the older replacement parts are harder to find, and skilled contractors are frequently booked weeks in advance.
“It usually takes time to find parts for maintenance for our building,” Mammen says. “It's just been rather difficult to get people to come and maintain, and some of it is cost, like how much it costs to get in to get somebody from Great Falls or Billings. Almost everybody who comes from out of town has a travel cost, and oftentimes a trip here will take a whole day.”
The financial pressure is compounded by the fact that many residents rely primarily on fixed incomes.
Mammen says, “Social Security seems to go up very marginally every year, and cost of living seems to be going up dramatically. Though we try really hard to have competitive rates and provide as low cost rentals as we can, it's Social Security, which most people are relying on for the majority of their income, doesn't seem to be able to keep up."
Mammen says staff have worked to offset costs where possible, including accepting SNAP benefits for meals and helping some residents access rental assistance, but acknowledges that resources remain limited.
“We really do try to present a good option for the elderly residents who need it,” he says.
As Lewistown’s population continues to age, residents say the future of Eagles Manor carries implications beyond the building itself.
“This place has taken care of generations of people in this town,” Van Haur says. “The community really needs it.”
Residents and management alike say preserving Eagles Manor will require balancing the realities of rising costs with the ongoing need for affordable senior housing, a challenge they say is shared by rural communities across Montana.
