Sienna Senior Living is making its second acquisition in Ottawa so far in 2025, announcing an agreement to buy the 172-apartment Hazeldean Gardens Retirement Residence in the city’s west-end Stittsville neighbourhood for $85.25 million.

Hazeldean Gardens, which was completed in 2018, comprises 129 independent living suites, 31 assisted living units and 12 memory care units.

Markham, Ont.-based Sienna reports the property is close to stabilization. It expects the residence “to benefit from significant synergies with the nearby properties owned by the company”, the announcement in Sienna’s 2025 Q1 financial report states.

"Our expanding presence in Ottawa reflects our confidence in this market and is supported by the impressive performance across our existing portfolio in the region," David Hung, Sienna’s chief financial officer and executive vice-president, investments, said in the announcement. "Given the property’s close proximity to other Sienna-owned assets in the area, we expect to benefit from immediate synergies and forecast a 6.8 per cent investment yield in the first year following closing."

Sienna said the going-in investment yield is 6.33 per cent before the internal synergies are initiated.

The purchase price includes a performance-based payment of $3.75 million, and is subject to an additional performance-based contingent payment of $1.25 million. The acquisition will be completed at a significant discount to replacement cost.

Sienna intends to finance the purchase with cash on hand.

Hazeldean Gardens family-owned and operated

Hazeldean Gardens was developed and operated by a small private company controlled by the Lewandoski and Jackson families. They have also developed and operated two other Eastern Ontario facilities over the past 20 years, Rideau Gardens in Ottawa and Quinte Gardens in Belleville.

Apartments in the Stittsville facility range from studios and studio-plus-den up to two-bedroom units. It also offers parking, an atrium/greenhouse, chapel and theatre room among its amenities package.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions, and is expected to close in 60 to 75 days.

Sienna has already made three acquisitions in 2025, including the 165-suite Wildpine Residence, also in Ottawa’s Stittsville community. It was acquired for $48 million.

Its other acquisitions this year are the $181-million purchase of four continuing care homes in Alberta on April 1, and the $26.5-million acquisition of the 30 per cent interest it did not already own in Nicola Lodge in Port Coquitlam, B.C.

The company also has Cawthra Gardens long-term care home in Mississauga under contract in a sale which is to close in early 2026. That 192-bed facility is being purchased for $32.6 million.

Sienna's Q1 2025 financial report

Sienna said in its financial report additional acquisitions are pending, though it did not provide further details.

President and CEO Nitin Jain cited the company’s “strong growth momentum” in his comments in the financial report.

Among the highlights in Q1:

• average same property occupancy in its retirement segment rose 260 basis points year-over-year to 92.5 per cent;
• total adjusted revenue, excluding one-time items, increased 12.1 per cent in Q1 2025, to $241.8 million;
• total adjusted same property NOI, excluding one-time items, rose 8.5 per cent to $42.5 million (16.7 per cent for the retirement segment and 2.2 per cent for the long-term care segment);
• operating funds from operations per share, excluding one-time items, increased 8.3 per cent in Q1;
• Sienna raised $144 million in equity on Feb. 27, and increased liquidity to $445 million as at March 31;
• its debt-to-adjusted-gross-book-value ratio was 38.5 per cent, down from 44.3 per cent in the year-earlier period;
• net and comprehensive income for the quarter was $15.8 million, down from $19.7 million in Q1 2024.

At the end of the quarter, Sienna owned 82 retirement and long-term care properties in Canada with an approximate gross book value of $2.7 billion. It also managed 12 additional facilities. It employed over 14,500 people.