What does the
approval of the Mountain View Senior's Housing Project mean to Sundre and
District?
It means that we
are a big step closer to the goal of keeping seniors and their families
together in Sundre and District. Upon
completion of this 103-unit facility, seniors and their families throughout
Mountain View County will be able to receive the care and housing they deserve.
In Sundre, as in
many rural communities in Alberta, when seniors require 24-hour care due to a
health crisis, or deteriorating health, they are either cared for in emergency
beds in hospital or placed in available care beds in other centers. The strain on seniors and their families was
apparent and the need for higher quality of support for seniors was determined
as a need. The pressure on our own
hospital critical care beds was also increasing.
More than 2 years
ago, the Sundre Seniors' Care and Housing Committee began advocating for
seniors in our community. They worked
very closely with Mountain View Seniors Housing to demonstrate the need in the
community and they pressed local and provincial governments to respond to the
needs in the community. Shovels will be
in the ground this fall and the doors are expected to open in the summer of
2016.
This is a $26.6
million project that will see the 45 beds at Foothills Lodge (which provide
level 1 and level 2 care) moved to these new accommodations. Along with replacing Foothills Lodge, there
will be an additional 40 beds to accommodate 24-hour care (level 4 and 4D). Level 1 and 2 care is independent living with
some assistance while level 4 and 4D is care requiring 24-hour monitoring and
assistance. These new beds will reduce
strain on our hospital acute care beds also. In addition to these 85 beds, there will be 18
independent life style "life lease" units so seniors of all abilities
can live together - no matter what their ability - in a "campus of
care" complex model.
Mountain View
Seniors Housing provides "housing" options for seniors. They are a "not for profit"
organization providing affordable and subsidized housing options. I pay about $50 per year through my taxes to
support MVSH. The ratepayers of Sundre, Didsbury, Olds, Carstairs, Cremona and
the County of Mountain View contribute to Mountain View Seniors Housing each
year through a requisition. The
residents of the housing facilities pay for their housing - and there is some
subsidy for some residents paid for by municipal taxes.
Without the space
and staffing for level 4 and 4D care in Sundre, seniors have been placed in
available, appropriate beds for their needs in other communities, sometimes
very far away. Although this building
will be located in Sundre, it will mean that seniors from all corners of
Mountain View County will be able to have options of appropriate care beds in
Sundre, Olds and Didsbury when available. As our population grows older there will be a
need for more of these options for seniors. The Board and staff at Mountain View Seniors
Housing will continue working with all communities within the County of
Mountain View to provide affordable housing options for seniors.
As always, if you
have questions about any of this information, please give me a call at home at
403-638-3535. Thank you for taking the time to read about this very exciting
project in our community :) Thank you to
all who worked so hard over the past years to make this dream come true. Our seniors deserve it.
Mayor
Terry Leslie
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