Work is well underway on a new seniors lodge in Bashaw that will replace the 46-year-old Bashaw Valley Lodge.
Bethany Group is building the Bashaw Meadows supportive living facility, with construction started late last year.
Bethany Group president and CEO Denis Beesley said the project is expected to take about 15 months.
“That would put us sometime at the end of this year, early 2013.
The new lodge will contain 63 rooms, including 30 designed for supportive living residents. Another 27 will be lodge units and six will be one-bedroom suites that could be occupied by couples.
Beesley said the 37 rooms in the old lodge measure about 190 square feet.
“If you try to put a TV in these rooms and a bed, you’re really maxed out.”
Rooms in Bashaw Meadows will be more than double that size, and will provide residents with private bathing areas. All residents will receive basic services, including three meals a day, and among the staff will be nurses who can provide a higher level of care.
Cost of the new lodge will be about $11 million, said Beesley, pointing out that the Town of Bashaw donated the land for the facility. A provincial Affordable Supportive Living Initiative grant worth about $4.5 million was also obtained.
Beesley said the old lodge is owned by the Camrose and Area Lodge Authority, with Bethany managing it. It’s yet to be decided what will happen to that building when Bashaw Meadows goes into service, he said.
The building was designed by Berry Architects and Associates of Red Deer, with the general contractor Krawford Construction of Edmonton.
hrichards@www.reddeeradvocate.com