PHOTOS: Seniors Silenced on Silver Oaks Mediation

Only the seniors of , their closest supporters and the attorneys involved know what happened at a mediation session in Cleveland Wednesday.

About 20 seniors trekked from the retirement complex near to downtown Cleveland Wednesday for the mediation, which was led by the Ohio Civil Rights Commission.

The mediation session, held at the Lausche State Office Building, involved the seniors' attorney, Avery Friedman, and lawyers for the current owners of the retirement complex, Tell Real Estate Trust, and the prospective owner, Alabama-based Capstone Development Corp.

Everyone who took part in the closed-door talks signed confidentiality agreements prohibiting them from talking about the details of the mediation, including Kent City Councilman Robin Turner and Arlyne Habeeb, the director of community outreach services for the Portage County Community Action Council.

Friedman said he could not talk about the mediation but said it is ongoing.

"There will be continued talks," he said.

Several of the seniors who made the trip told Kent Patch before the session started that they were hoping for an extension to continue living at the complex or a cash settlement for their forced removal. Capstone signed an agreement to buy the 13-acre complex from Tell Real Estate by Dec. 31, 2011.

Habeeb said the CAC board of directors has gotten behind an idea pitched by CAC Executive Director David Shea for the nonprofit to buy the complex, but whether Tell Real Estate could break their agreement with Capstone is unlikely.