Valley View Manor is nearing completion with some minor work left and an inspection all that remains before residents move in.
The goal is to have residents moved into their new home early May, according to Mayor Rick Pankiw.
“I’m going to say the first week of May we can move residents here, I pretty confident we will be ready by then,” said Pankiw.
There is still work that has to be done before the manor can move its residents in. In particular electrical and plumbing work has to be finished.
Once the finishing touches are done, Alberta Health Services (AHS) will complete an inspection on the 80-room home.
“[AHS] won’t come out for the inspection until all the deficiencies are dealt with,” Pankiw explained.
While there is some work on the home, Pankiw says the work should be completed by early April.
Once AHS has given their stamp of approval things will move fairly quickly.
Residents will be moved in within two weeks of AHS approval.
“Once we have approval, we’ll be ready to go and things will move along quickly.”
One hold up in the process is the delayed name plaques.
The residents will not be allowed to move into their new home until the name plaques have arrived.
Each resident must have their name prominently printed on the door, according to AHS standards.
“We have been trying to get these in for the last seven weeks or so,” Pankiw explained. “We can’t move in the residents until they come in.”
Part of the preparations for opening is tour. Already town staff and the nurses from Parkland Manor have had a look around the new complex.
Generally all feedback has been positive, and people are getting excited for the opening.
Family members of the residents will soon be given their first look as well.
“We are planning to have family members come through for a tour in the next two weeks or so. We want them to know what is in store for their parents or grandparents.”
The residents have not yet seen their new home, though they have picked out their own rooms.
The residents picked out which of the 80 rooms, 72 of which are single-occupancy and eight are double-occupancy, they would like after looking over the floor plans.
One resident chose her room specifically for the view.
“We have one resident who is quite excited to be able to look out her window and see the farm where she was born and raised,” Pankiw said.
Some residents are eagerly awaiting their own tour, while others don’t want to see anything until they can move in.
“Some don’t even want to tour it, because they would have to wait until May to move in, and that could be disappointing,” said Pankiw.
There are still seven residents yet to choose their rooms. Those who wish to move into the new Valley View Manor will be placed on a waiting list, as the current residents of Parkland Manor have first dibs on the rooms.
