The first phase of construction has been completed at the Vermilion Valley Lodge.
The seniors housing complex began construction on their C wing in March 2017 giving 16 seniors new rooms to live in. Chief Administrative Officer Sheri Heller says they followed the same blueprint as their previous wing but made major upgrades.
“New kitchen, new dining room, there’s a multipurpose space upstairs and a family living room upstairs. There large rooms about 410 square feet and we furnished them all.”
The wing will be ready for seniors to move into in mid-July as the building is currently waiting for a health inspection.
Along with the completion of the wing construction, the Vermilion and District Housing Foundation completed their fundraising campaign to raise funds for furnishings. The fundraiser raised a total of $1,586, 363.00 surpassing their original goal of $1.5 million through donations.
Heller says the building was paid for through government grants and loans through the county, however, nothing inside the building will be funded through the same process.
“Upgraded furniture, it will also do some of the landscaping that we will need to do once phase two is done, as well as buying some artwork in here to make it feel like home and it will also do some debt reduction.”
The second and final phase of construction is expected to start at the end of July and will see two wings being torn down into one two-story wing that will house 36 seniors. The Lodge is not gaining any extra rooms rather replacing 52 rooms to make them more comfortable for residents. The completion date for the final phase will be in September 2019.
The Lodge does have two more wings that are going to remain the same but have seen some necessary updates such as a new sprinkler system, fire system and nurse call system.