A seniors’ centre at 1010 St. George Boulevard in Moncton will not come to fruition.
Rising Tide bought the building in January to build seniors apartments on the top two floors.
In late April, council approved operational funding for a seniors group to create a centre on the first floor, if several conditions were met.
But Dale Hicks, the president of Rising Tide, told our newsroom they were running out of time to make the project a reality.
“There’s no agreement here. There’s a commitment on funding providing they meet 16 conditions which, I can tell you, will take months,” said Hicks.
Hicks said his organization must ensure there is a clear business case for every project that guaranteed financial sustainability.
RELATED: $1.1M approved for seniors centre in Moncton
The board was seeking a 20-year plan to ensure the viability of the seniors’ centre operation. The city agreed to provide funding for five years, after which the organization is expected to be “fully sustainable.”
Rising Tide is now moving ahead with a revised plan to create 30 affordable apartments for seniors on the top two floors and lease the bottom floor to doctors who want to create a medical clinic.
“This revised plan will allow Rising Tide to continue to achieve its affordable housing mandate while improving primary health care to residents of the community,” said Hicks, adding the doctors have committed to providing primary medical care to the building’s residents.
Hicks said the hope is to have the building occupied by early 2026. In the meantime, Rising Tide wants to keep working with the city and the seniors for an activity centre as part of another project.
