Seniors are enjoying life at North Ridge Place.
The new addition to St. Albert’s North Ridge Lodge opened several months ago but the opening became official on Thursday. Provincial and municipal politicians from all over the Capital region were on hand to congratulate everyone who contributed to the $12-million facility. The consensus from all parties was that the facility is a shining example of co-operation and a wonderful place for seniors.
Seniors who actually live in North Ridge Place agreed with the glowing reviews.
“It’s a very nice place to live,” said Cynthia Hanna, 84.
She likes the location and the friendliness of staff and residents.
“It offers me companionship of my age,” Hanna said. “It’s like a new adventure because it’s taking another step in the road of life.”
Bill Ostafichuk and his wife Vicki feel like they’ve found a place to settle.
“I’ve been in a couple of places now since I retired. This is one of the best ones I’ve hit so far,” said Bill, 82. “We’re 100 per cent happy.”
“It’s friendly. We all get along really nice,” said Vicki, 77.
Bill likes the fact that it’s a brand new building and everything works perfectly.
“I think I’m settled now to the end of however long I’m going to exist,” he said. “I doubt if we would find something that would beat this place.”
The building is comprised of modular cubes that were built in a Barrhead factory and trucked to the site. Each module holds two living units. This modular construction allowed the building to be completed in seven months.
For residents, the completed building is providing pleasant living conditions and access to amenities.
“The meals are really, really good,” said resident Katherine Bokenfohr, who moved from a farm north of St. Albert to the lodge.
“And everything else, I have nothing to complain about,” she said.
Irene Lema, 84, is also making the adjustment to apartment living after 63 years on a farm near Villeneuve. The North Ridge units are more spacious than others she checked out and the people are friendly, she said.
“You can do what you want. You can either join in to different things or just go up to your room and relax,” she said. “Everybody says they really like it.”
The province contributed $8 million toward the $12 million project and also sold the land for $1. The City of St. Albert and its surrounding municipalities contributed about $250,000 to the project, with St. Albert accounting for about 90 per cent of the total.
Sturgeon Foundation board chair Jack Dennett thanked government officials for making the development happen.
“Without this support, the project would not have materialized,” he said.
There are 58 residents among the 48 new units in the three-storey facility and a waiting list to get in, Dennett said.
The Sturgeon Foundation is working on a funding application for a second phase addition that would add 42 units for adults with disabilities.
