Birch Hill Terrace-RiverWoods affiliation OKd

Agreement aims to bring ‘fresh ideas and resources to the table’

State regulators have officially approved the affiliation agreement between Birch Hill Terrace, a continuing care retirement community in Manchester, and The RiverWoods Group, parent company of the RiverWoods continuing care retirement community in Exeter.

The nonprofit companies announced the approvals on Tuesday. They bring to an end a two-year process during which the NH Department of Insurance and the NH Department of Charitable Trust reviewed and approved the agreement.

Justine Vogel, RiverWoods’ CEO, said that, the two communities “share identical values and mission. We were both founded by grassroots community members interested in improving the lives of others.”

According to Gary Zabierek, president of Birch Hill Terrace, the affiliation “will bring fresh ideas and resources to the table.” First on the agenda is a major capital investment in the facility’s physical plant, which he said “will transform the look of our apartment homes, and bring new energy to the community.”

The two-year, $9 million project is aimed at renovating the campus’ common spaces and apartment designs. It is the single largest capital investment in the company’s history.