IROQUOIS FALLS - The redevelopment of a long-term care facility has hit another roadblock.
After a recent tender process, construction costs for the South Centennial Manor (SCM) redevelopment project in Iroquois Falls exceeded the budget expectations by approximately 40 per cent.
MICs Group of Health Service CEO and long-term care administrator Paul Chatelain said the construction tender process closed in December 2024 with only two submissions.
Both bids exceeded the $45 million Class A budget estimate by 43 per cent, a gap Chatelain called “crazy.”
“We've had our architects do a post-addendum tender, which is for value engineering, to go back and basically get these two construction companies to review their tender and see if they can trim costs in any way,” he said.
“They did that and came back with about a $1.5 million savings from each side. But we're still about 40 per cent over.”
The Ministry of Long-Term Care has acknowledged that construction bids are coming in higher than budgeted across multiple long-term care redevelopment projects, Chatelain said.
However, he said MICs Group cannot award the construction contract until the funding shortfall is addressed.
The SCM redevelopment project has been in the works since 2011.
SEE: Iroquois Falls long-term care home looks to Cochrane for redevelopment cash
Initially planned as a 69-bed home, the project later expanded to 96 beds to better accommodate the region’s aging population and growing waitlist, Chatelain said.
The land for the new facility, located behind the hospital, was donated by the Town of Iroquois Falls.
“Our home is probably 65 years old. We just got our license extended — it was expiring in 2025, and we got another five-year extension. But our building is not to code,” Chatelain said.
“We have a leaking roof that we keep patching every year. It’s old and needs to be upgraded.”
The aging facility serves not just Iroquois Falls but also surrounding municipalities such as Cochrane and Matheson, making its redevelopment critical for long-term care access in the region, Chatelain said.
With the provincial budget set to be released in the spring, he said there is hope that additional construction funding subsidies will be included.
“I don’t imagine the ministry is going to hand over the additional $20 million that we need, but we’re going to be looking for alternative financing,” said Chatelain.
“The fundraising continues — we have more fundraising to do now — but ministries, I think, want us to build, and are going to do what they can to help us out.”
One alternative being explored is the possibility of a multi-story home, similar to facilities in North Bay and Timmins. Chatelain suggested that building vertically rather than horizontally could result in cost savings, though that would require redesigning plans.
Looking ahead, Chatelain hopes to see tangible progress on the redevelopment in 2025.
“I hope we get the shovel in the ground and take advantage of the increased construction funding subsidy,” he said.
“Ideally, if we can get an increase to our loan from the Ontario Financing Authority and secure corporate donations — maybe even from some of the mines in the region — that would help us overcome the shortfall.”
Despite the challenges, Chatelain remains optimistic.
“The good news is we haven’t been told to stop,” he said.
“We have a committed government that wants to build long-term care homes, and I think they’re going to have to step up a little more. We’re optimistic that we’re going to build this home.”