EDMONTON- A south Edmonton seniors home re-opened its doors Wednesday, after the building was destroyed by fire four years ago.
In May 2009, 160 residents were displaced when arson destroyed their homes.
On Wednesday, the new $27 million state-of-the-art Lifestyle Options Whitemud Retirement Community was officially unveiled.
“Through hardship comes innovation. Recovering from this devastating loss gave us a unique opportunity to re-evaluate the changing needs of the aging population and incorporate those needs into our new building,” said Jarret Sheath, vice-president of Lifestyle Options Ltd.
The new building, located at 40th Avenue and 106th Street, is designed to make it feel more like home for residents; it offers social and games areas, fitness and recreation opportunities, and a full service salon.
“It has dementia care- smaller units where people have individual rooms. And they have a wonderful dining room where they can go to and they can be part of their community, even though they have cognitive disabilities,” added Renate Sainsbury, manager of Lifestyle Options.
About 10 residents who lived in the old facility have already moved into the new building.
“They’ve returned to a beautiful facility. It’s state-of-the-art for Edmonton and Alberta. And most importantly, it’s really going to serve the needs of the community for years to come,” said Health Minister Fred Horne.
$8 million in funding for the new facility came from the Alberta government’s Affordable Supportive Living Initiative and Alberta Capital Bonds.
With files from Laurel Clark, Global News.
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