MORE than 100 residents at the Loxton Retirement Village will be reconnected with the community through a new, multi-use wellbeing and community centre.
The District Council of Loxton Waikerie will receive $1.2 million of Federal Government funding to build the community centre on View Street, which will be used to join residents at the retirement village with other members of the local community.
“It’s fantastic to be able to get the funding,” said David Beaton, District Council of Loxton Waikerie CEO.
“It’s welcoming to see something that sets up the retirement village to have something of their own.
“It gets cold in winter and hot in the summer, so somewhere where they can go and get together, and share a bit of fellowship is a great thing for the retirement village to have.”
The proposed $1.2 million centre will have the capacity to service 100 residents at any one time, and will include amenities such as a gym, meeting/consult rooms, a semi-commercial kitchen, toilets, and storage rooms.
Chairman of the Loxton Retirement Village section 41 committee Warren Falting said having a venue on site where residents could socialise whenever they wanted removed the need to hire another building, which in turn, gave residents more of an opportunity to gather socially.
“I think whilst the village has been divided, it’s been difficult to come together,” he said.
“If we wanted to, we would’ve had to hire another building and the residents would have to pay for that, so this will just open up a new opportunity for the people at the village.
“Honestly, it’s been something we’ve been hoping for for quite some time.”
Member of the Loxton Retirement Village section 41 committee Jan Cass said this would improve the residents’ mental health and wellbeing.
“At the moment, the people (in the village) don’t know who lives on the (opposite side of the street),” she said.
“A lot of people – if they want a game of bridge or scrabble – don’t like asking people into their own homes, but at the moment they have to.
“If they have a community centre, they’ll be able to get a little room, and just go there and play bridge or scrabble.
“That’s really important for them – to be able to mix together and do all sorts of things.
“It will be so good for their mental health as well as everything else.”
Mr Beaton said construction on the centre will begin at the start of July, with the council expected to complete the project well before its June 30, 2022 cut-off date.
Member for Barker Tony Pasin said the $207 million investment into these community projects under the Building Better Regions Fund (BBRF) is exactly what the government is looking to do to continually strengthen communities and improve the state’s regions.
“The Riverland councils as a group are doing particularly well out of these programs, whether it’s BBRF or Murray Darling diversification,” he said.
“These projects will transform communities and help ensure our productive and vibrant region remains strong, resilient and prosperous in the long term, and I look forward to seeing these projects boost economic prosperity across the Riverland.”