One of Mackay’s largest retirement homes is set to almost double in size, with construction starting on a new four-level wing at Kerrisdale Gardens.
The expansion comes with a $15 million price tag, providing the retirement facility with 7 spacious apartments, 3 villas and an additional 40 residential aged care beds.
Kerrisdale Gardens is part of Good Shepherd Lodge, which has been in the Mackay community since 1974. Its vision is to enable its residents to live in an environment where they feel at home.
CEO Greg Skelton said that fostering a sense of belonging enables people to live a healthier life and encourages the local community to come into Kerrisdale to utilise the services available.
“We have a lovely café where we welcome mothers with young children to come in to use the play area. We have a chemist and a physio and those services are available to anyone,” Mr Skelton said.
“We are a part of the growing community at Kerrisdale and with no shortage of land on site this won’t be the last expansion.”
With an ageing population Mr Skelton said that demand for aged care will continue to grow.
“Mackay is one of the areas with the greatest need for residential aged care beds, it’s a high priority to provide this service,” he said.
“It shouldn’t just be a place to live, it’s a lifestyle. Our long-term goal is that of an integrated aged care facility that blends with the local community.”
Woollam Constructions was awarded the tender which is thought to inject more than $9 million into the local economy while creating between 150 – 200 local jobs.
Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson added that up to 200 jobs would be created in the construction alone, with another 50 permanent jobs being attributed to the expansion.
“All of that contributes to the regional economy immensely,” he said.
The project is due for practical completion in December with the first residents expected to move in within a year, in January 2023.
New inclusions for the aged care facility and community include a chapel and a men’s shed. There will also be additional car parking spaces built in to meet the rising number of visitors.
Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson and the Bishop of North Queensland The Right Reverend Dr Keith Joseph turn the sod at the site of Kerrisdale Gardens’ aged care facility expansion
Chairman Damian Carroll, Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson, the Bishop of North Queensland The Right Reverend Dr Keith Joseph, Woollams Constructions Managing Director Craig Percival, Good Shepherd Lodge CEO Greg Skelton get construction underway at Kerrisdale Gardens. Photos: Amanda Wright
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