COCHRANE - A northeastern Ontario long-term care facility is looking to surrounding municipalities for financial support to redevelop.
South Centennial Manor’s (SCM) redevelopment committee has been planning a 96-bed remodel for the Iroquois Falls facility since 2011.
At Tuesday's (March 26) Cochrane council meeting, MICs Healthcare Foundation Gilles Forget, who is a former Iroquois Falls mayor, and the foundation’s vice-chair Suzanne de Laplante presented their request.
While they didn’t ask for a specific amount of money, they said the fundraising goal is $8 million. They are currently short about $3.4 million.
When the committee was formed in 2011, de Laplante said an application was sent to the ministry. She said they were approved for a new build instead of a renovation.
“We were approved in 2016 for a brand new 96-bed facility. And therefore we started fundraising with many different projects,” she said.
Coun. Sylvie Charron-Lemieux said they recognize that there’s a desperate need for the redevelopment project to happen.
Council agreed to address the request during budget deliberations.
Forget and de Laplante said Iroquois Falls committed to contributing $3.3 million in 2026. They also noted they have received $2.1 million in foundation donations, which are net of architecture fees paid. The province has also said it will contribute cash after it hits a certain stage.
The total estimated construction costs are $41.5 million.
Although the new facility will be built in Iroquois Falls, de Laplante said it serves the surrounding communities, including Cochrane and Matheson.
According to Forget, their operating license is set to expire next year. He said they’ve applied for a five-year extension, but the future for the year 2030 is uncertain as the facility no longer meets long-term care standards.
“The manor itself is in dire straits … It’s in very bad shape,” he said.
“The estimated population in 2029 of people over 65 will increase by 23 per cent. And, for those who are 75, by 27 per cent. And with more immigrants coming in, the population will just continue to grow. There'll be a bigger need for all this.”
Find out more about the redevelopment project here.
