Five years after the project was first announced, ground was broken Wednesday for the new 128-bed long-term care facility in the village of Havelock, Ont.
Officials gathered at 628 Old Norwood Rd. just south of the village 40 kilometres east of Peterborough to mark the occasion for a project that was marred by delays, including the COVID-19 pandemic and an initial contractual disagreement between the province and AON Inc, a Peterborough-based developer.
In front of a small crowd, Peterborough-Kawartha Conservative MPP Dave Smith said residents’ patience paid off. He said the project will mean 128 area residents won’t have to relocate to another community for care in their “final retirement years.”
“When they should be just enjoying where they live,” Smith said.
He also said up to 150 people will be working in the long-term care home.
“When you’re in a community of 1,300, 150 jobs is a massive employer,” he noted. “That is going to be a game-changer for so many things in this community.”
Initially announced in February 2018 by the former Liberal government, the project was a goal of Havelock-Belmont-Methuen Township dating back to July 2011, when it first applied for an application after purchasing the land and adding sewage and water services.
The township also lobbied at Queen’s Park in 2016 for government approval.
When first announced in 2018, Smith, then a Progressive Conservative candidate, called the project “a pre-election promise,” four months before the provincial election, which he won for the riding.
When the Progressive Conservatives came into power in 2018, construction was expected to begin in 2020, only to be put on hold due to the pandemic.
Then in 2022, the province announced it had cancelled its developer agreement with AON Inc. A new developer search was launched, however, AON ended up being the successful bidder again last fall.
And earlier this year, the province amended its capital development funding policy, giving AON the green light to begin work.
Construction on the new facility is expected to start by the end of this month with a goal of an opening in 2025, says Brad Smith, AON president and CEO.
“This is a great announcement — it has been a long time coming,” he said.
Smith noted that the project went to tender as the pandemic hit, which “caused a bit of problems.”
“But the Ford government stepped forward with the necessary funding so we’re now able to proceed with construction,” Smith said.
“So it’s a great announcement for AON and Havelock.”