The Alberta government is investing $5 million to build a new recovery community in Red Deer.
The facility, announced on June 18, will be home to 75 treatment beds and will provide long-term residential treatment to individuals struggling with addiction.
“This is an important step in the expansion of our mental health and addiction recovery strategy,” Associate Health Minister Jason Luan said in a news release on Saturday.
The new centre is the first of five communities to be built by the provincial government as part of Alberta’s Recovery Plan.
The province will be providing a total of $25 million to support the construction of these five facilities, which will add 400 treatment beds, creating a 30 per cent increase in Alberta’s current capacity to serve those battling addiction.
“We dedicated a portion of our recovery plan to ensure infrastructure was being dedicated to the vulnerable people in our communities,” Premier Jason Kenney said.
“These recovery communities are a continuation of our efforts at creating 4,000 addiction treatment spaces in the province and building a full continuum of care for people struggling with addiction.”
Officials said recovery communities, also known as therapeutic communities, are used in more than 65 countries across the globe. The facilities utilize clinical and peer intervention methods to gradually advance participants through several stages of treatment.
Red Deer officials said they’re excited to see the province’s first facility of its kind in their city.
“The City of Red Deer is proud to have worked closely with the Government of Alberta on this important initiative,” Mayor Tara Veer. “Our friends, family and neighbours suffering from addiction will have a place to go that’s close to home.”
The province’s recovery communities are expected to begin accepting participants by spring 2021.