Sienna Announces Changes to Annual General Meeting and Provides COVID-19 Update

MARKHAM, Ontario, April 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sienna Senior Living Inc. (“Sienna” or the “Company”) (TSX: SIA) announced that the Company has made changes to its annual meeting (“AGM”) scheduled for April 21, 2020. The Company also provided a business update on COVID-19.

AGM Update

The AGM continues to be scheduled for April 21, 2020 at 10:00 am; however, due to the closure of our planned venue and restrictions on in-person gatherings due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, the AGM location is being changed to our Support Services Office location in Markham, Ontario, and will be proceeding with access provided exclusively by teleconference for all attendees. The toll-free dial-in number for participants is 1-844-543-5234, conference ID: 1398401. A webcast of the call will be accessible via Sienna's website.

Voting for registered holders of Sienna shares will proceed only as outlined in Sienna’s Notice and Access notification accompanying the proxy circular for the AGM. Accordingly, there will be no voting at the meeting. The deadline for voting or receiving proxies in relation to this year’s AGM is Friday, April 17, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. (Toronto time). Voting results for resolutions to be voted on by shareholders will be announced by news release following the AGM. Sienna encourages shareholders to vote in advance as outlined in the Notice and Access notification and to participate in the AGM by teleconference.

“We are singularly focused on the health and safety of our residents, team members and families, and are doing everything we can to safeguard everyone who depends on our essential services, including our shareholders,” said Ms. Lois Cormack, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sienna.

Business Update

The management of COVID-19 is operationally intensive for the entire Company, with a significant impact on the residences with positive cases. Every Sienna residence continues to have extensive infection prevention measures and protocols in place to protect residents and team members against COVID-19 and to minimize the spread when a positive case is confirmed.

In the event of closure to admissions related to outbreak, long term care funding is preserved at 97% occupancy. The provincial governments in both Ontario and British Columbia, the provinces in which Sienna operates, have allocated $243 million and $10 million, respectively, in additional funding to long-term care homes. The funding is intended to support long term care as an essential service in managing the pandemic crisis. In the retirement sector, the Ontario government has announced $20 million in funding to retirement homes to support extraordinary expenses related to COVID-19. We continue to believe that occupancy in Sienna’s retirement portfolio could be temporarily impacted as a result of uncertain move-in and move-out dynamics in this time of COVID-19.

Sienna is working extensively with sector associations, peers and all levels of government agencies to navigate this situation together with one collective goal of preserving health and the safety of residents, teams and their families.  

Given the uncertainty and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company is withdrawing its 2020 outlook for the 2020 fiscal year, as provided with its Management Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2019.  We continue to believe that Sienna’s fundamentals remain strong with a solid balance sheet and ample liquidity. At this time, the Company has approximately $215 million of liquidity and an unencumbered asset pool of approximately $540 million.

“We are fortunate to have a very strong foundation and fundamentals to draw on, including a strong operating platform, a high quality and balanced portfolio, very strong relationships in the Canadian seniors’ living sector and supportive relationships with financial institutions,” said Ms. Cormack. “We want to acknowledge with gratitude and pride the tremendous work that our team is doing every day, coming to work to provide the essential care and services residents need. Thank you to all the families and stakeholders doing their part to battle the spread of COVID-19 by staying at home.”

Sienna’s commitment to you is to provide facts and current information on a regular basis. A separate section on our website has been dedicated to keeping our stakeholders informed. You may access this information at the following link: https://www.siennaliving.ca/covid-19-update. Questions can also be submitted by email to the following email address: [email protected].

About Sienna Senior Living

Sienna Senior Living Inc. (TSX:SIA) is a leading seniors’ living provider with 83 seniors’ living residences in key markets in Canada. Sienna offers a full range of seniors’ living options, including independent living, assisted living, long-term care, and specialized programs and services. Sienna also provides expert management services. Sienna is committed to national growth, while driving long-term value for shareholders. The Company’s approximately 12,000 employees are passionate about helping residents live fully every day, and were the driving force behind Sienna being named one of Canada’s Most Admired Corporate Cultures. For more information, please visit www.siennaliving.ca.

Forward-Looking Information

Certain of the statements contained in this news release are forward-looking statements and are provided for the purpose of presenting information about management’s current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. These statements generally use forward-looking words, such as “anticipate,” “continue,” “could,” “expect,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “believe,” “goals” or other similar words and include, among other things, statements with respect to the holding of its annual general meeting and government funding. These statements are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements and, accordingly, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. The forward-looking statements in this news release are based on information currently available and what management currently believes are reasonable assumptions.  The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements except as may be required by applicable law.

For further information, please contact:
Nitin Jain
Chief Financial Officer & Chief Investment Officer
(905) 489-0787
[email protected]