The Harborside retirement community in Port Washington has until Dec. 9 to present a proposed sales contract to a federal bankruptcy judge or face the possibility of liquidation, a judge ordered Wednesday.

Judge Alan S. Trust said he wants to know the identity of the potential buyer of the bankrupt property, the terms of the sale, how creditors will be paid and the impact on the 181 residents, including the average age is 90 years old.

The judge also scheduled a Dec. 11 hearing on a motion from the Office of the United States Trustee to dismiss the Chapter 11 case, which would end a nearly two-year effort to revamp The Harborside and stabilize its finances.

If the petition is approved, the institution’s assets would likely be sold under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy code.

Stan Yang, a lawyer for the U.S. trustee, said he was concerned about fees for attorneys and consultants using The Harborside’s remaining cash, which could mean creditors would not receive what they are owed.

“The debtor’s financial situation is deteriorating day by day and he appears to be accumulating unpaid administrative fees,” he wrote in an 11-page document filed in court after Wednesday’s hearing. “It is unclear how long the debtor will be able to maintain business operations or when all reserved (cash) funds will be exhausted.”

The hearing in federal court in Central Islip provided few answers to many questions from residents and their families.

Those questions include who the two bidders The Harborside is negotiating with, when the potential sale would be completed and whether it would be approved by the state Department of Health and Department of Financial Services.

Ronnie Killcommons, who has lived in Harborside for 14 years, attended the 30-minute hearing with his family.

“It’s my home and I love living in Amsterdam,” Killcommons said in an interview, referring to the property’s former name, Amsterdam at Harborside. “The friendships, the community, I don’t want to lose that.”

Killcommons told Newsday that she sold her home in Garden City to pay for the facility’s entrance fee, with the understanding that upon her death, any remaining funds would go to her heirs. That might not happen due to the bankruptcy filing, which is the third such filing in 10 years.

“We should be allowed to live where we put our heart and soul,” Killcommons, 86, said.

At the hearing, Rachel Nanes, attorney for The Harborside, said she had “productive discussions” with both bidders.

A meeting, Nanes said, will be held Thursday between The Harborside, bondholders, unsecured creditors and sponsor Amsterdam Continuing Care Health System Inc. in Manhattan to try to reach an agreement on a sale.

“We are trying to get consensus around one or more (buyout) proposals,” she said, adding that The Harborside hopes to present a final sales agreement to the judge by late December or early January.

Harborside is trying to negotiate a second sale after the first – valued at $104 million – collapsed last month in a regulatory dispute between the Department of Health and the winner of the court-approved auction. t year, Life Care Services Communities LLC. Iowa-based LCS said it was no longer interested in pursuing The Harborside.

Additionally, residents and their families recently hired attorney Elizabeth Aboulafia to represent them in court.

The move follows residents’ request to Gov. Kathy Hochul to appoint a facilitator to break the regulatory impasse between the health department and LCS, as well as work with other potential buyers.

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news, including economics, development, and government-business relations. He was previously head of the Albany office.