After almost a year delay, two new long-term care facilities will be opening soon in Richmond, bringing 228 new beds to the city.
Hamilton Village Care Centre — located along Garripie Avenue, a new street in the Hamilton area — will have 135 publicly funded beds once completed, according to Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH). The facility should be operational this spring.
“We anticipate it will open this April, although construction timelines sometimes shift,” said Carrie Stefanson, a spokesperson for the health authority.
When the project was announced by VCH in 2016, the Hamilton care centre was scheduled to open in February 2019. The centre is being built, and will be operated by, Trellis Seniors Services Ltd.
The second project is an expansion of Fraserview, located at 9580 Williams Rd. near No. 4 Road, which is undergoing an expansion and renovation by operator Kaigo Seniors Living Group. There will be 93 new beds added the existing 101 beds once it’s complete sometime this fall, said Stefanson.
It was originally set to be completed in early 2020.
When the Richmond News asked VCH about the cost and initial budget of each facility, VCH said to reach out to Kaigo and Trellis for those figures. Neither of those organizations provided the News this information.
All rooms in both facilities will be private with ensuite washrooms. There will also be double rooms to accommodate couples, and special care units.
The average wait time for a long-term care bed in Richmond is 35 days, said Stefanson, with priority given to Richmond residents who may be residing in long-term care in other regions.
“We prioritize clients based on their needs and work hard to allow for a planned transition to long-term care,” she said.
