During the March 23 Moosomin Chamber of Commerce meeting, an update was given on the progress of the long-term care/assisted living facility proposed for Moosomin. The presenation was made by Larry Scammell of Kohr Capital and Travis Penner of Bridge Road Developments.
The building will have 42 units, a combination of long-term care rooms and assisted living suites. The facility is expected to provide 15 full-time equivalent positions.
Penner explained that there are plans to begin construction later this year.
“Over the last couple of months, the number of people who have been expressing interest in this project both from a prospective tenant perspective as well as a prospective investor standpoint has been extremely positive and perhaps a little overwhelming. The support extends beyond a financial perspective. Some maybe don’t have the need or the interest in it who have also been quite supportive as well, so thank you to those in the business community, those in the town office, and those in the community as a whole for your support.
“So with this project, we are moving forward. We are very intent on starting this project’s construction later this year, probably sometime in the fall will be our goal to break the ground.
“We are in the process of soliciting proposals right now from engineers and architects to design this building so we can tender it and apply for permits.”
Penner says the proponents are looking forward to proceeding with the project.
“We are eager, we are prepared to move forward and we are moving forward. We’re looking forward to the coming months as things start to take shape and be fruitful.”
Scammell says that the proponents already secured enough more than enought investment for the first closing for capital investment and are making preparations to move forward with their plans.
“From an investor and capital standpoint we have verbally secured the f closing which we thought would be as much as half a million dollars, but recent developments would indicate that it could be less than that.”
He says that over the next few weeks, they hope to have all the paperwork and legal documents completed.
“There are a couple of things we need to get done. One is the paperwork which, like it or not, is one of the crucial aspects of our responsibility. In the next couple of weeks, we should have that completed and wrapped up.”
While the first closing for investment is oversubscribed, with $650,000 committed, Scammell says they can still take additional investments in the project. For the second closing, a total of $3 million will need to be raised for the project.
He notes that the community of Moosomin has been supportive of the project.
“We would then take any additional interest in investing in the project, which is still an option, and we would take that interest and place it on a waitlist for the second capital call we anticipate will be required closer to construction, which Travis Penner alluded to will be in the fall this year.
“It’s been incredibly supportive. They’re interested and in some cases, I’d use the term overwhelming and I think that is just the Moosomin way as I’m growing to understand.
“Moosomin is an impressive community and from our perspective, it’s very tightly knit which is a great thing. It’s been inspiring to see so much interest from a community to get involved in an idea and in a project like this that is going to bring a much-needed service, a much-needed asset, and facility to their community.”
Rodeo update
Additionally, at the Moosomin Chamber of Commerce in-person meeting, the president of the Moosomin Rodeo Committee Mike Sidoryk, provided an update on plans for a potential rodeo this year.
Due to the constantly changing guidelines, Sidoryk says the committee is unsure if they will be able to host it again this year.
“We’ve been trying the past couple of years to get it sorted out and see what we can do.
“The money’s there but it’s whether or not the event can happen based on restrictions.”
Sidoryk says that the support for the event has been overwhelming, but they need to wait and see what the restrictions are before confirming the rodeo.
“Over the last couple weeks I went around to a few of our sponsors and their response has been overwhelming. I think everyone is at that stage that they want to have something going on in the summer and they want to be part of it. So we’re good on that side of it.
“It’s going to come down to how many people we can hold.”
Sidoryk said the rodeo, which is currently scheduled for July 9th and 10th, is a popular event.
“We all missed it last year. No matter how much we grumble or think that this is so much work, we all enjoy it, we enjoy the sport. We like being part of the community. It’s a weekend that brings a lot of stuff to the community as well whether it’s clothing, food, or gas.
It’s good for the community, but we’re trying everything we can this year to make it a go.”
