Continuing-Care Housing Under Way on Vancouver Island

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

Saanich, B.C.—Work is under way on the Heights at Mount View, a continuing-care housing and memory support property in Saanich, British Columbia, which is part of greater Victoria. The development is a joint venture between Baptist Housing Ministries, Vancouver-based Capital Region Hospital District (CRHD) and Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA).

The CRHD contributed $18.1 million towards capital costs, and will retain ownership of the land, which it will lease to Baptist Housing for 25 years. VIHA is providing operating funds Baptist Housing, which will also contribute through a $1 million grant. The property is scheduled to open in late 2014.

The Heights at Mount View is designed to replace Baptist Housing’s Central Care Home and Mount Edwards Court, which are increasingly outdated. The new facility will include 220 apartments divided among 13 distinct “neighborhoods,” two of which will be dedicated to memory support rooms for about 40 residents. The neighborhoods—each with its own kitchen, dining room and living area—are comprised entirely of private residential rooms.

Cotter Architects Inc. is the project’s architect of record, in collaboration with Perkins Eastman, the interior architect for the project. The goal of the overall design is to provide a non-institutional environment, according to Perkins Eastman principal Leslie Moldow.

Among other non-institutional features, the property’s first floor will function as a community center to encouraging interaction among Saanichites of all ages. Residents will have access to the facility’s first-floor amenities, including the Towne Hall room for gatherings, concerts, and lectures; a fireplace lounge with views of the surrounding acreage; and a playground area and gallery available to hang local children’s artwork.