"This project is about enhancing the quality of life in our community. It’s about investing in our future. It’s about caring for people and ensuring that our infrastructure is up-to-date and the best it can be," said Greater Sudbury Mayor Jim Gordon.

"The Pioneer Manor capital redevelopment project is an example of the Ernie Eves government commitment to long-term care services in the City of Greater Sudbury. As construction progresses over the months to come, citizens can take comfort and pride in the knowledge that we are investing in health care in our community."

A redeveloped 188-bed residence will open at Pioneer Manor in the Fall of 2004. The three-storey building will replace beds in the long-term care facility. Tribury Construction is the general contractor for the $22 million project, of which $13 million comes from the City of Greater Sudbury and $9 million from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care for Ontario. The building was designed by Blaine Nicholls of Nicholls Yallowega Belanger Architects.

Two tropical trees, symbols of growth in partnership with the Government of Ontario, the City of Greater Sudbury and Pioneer Manor, were prepared by The Honourable Dan Newman and Mayor Gordon for a future "Winter Park", an indoor atrium that will link the new wing with the current facility.

The new Pioneer Manor residence will be three storeys with two "home units" on each floor. Each unit will house approximately 32 residents in semi-private and private rooms. Features include outdoor balconies leading from the dining room, two lounge areas, and an activity room for each unit.

All Pioneer Manor residents will have access to a new chapel, apartments for overnight guests, landscaped courtyards, outdoor walking paths and the "Winter Park" atrium with two-storey windows on a southern exposure, a central stage for entertainment, comfortable seating areas and indoor tropical trees.

"When complete in the Fall of 2004, you’ll see a beautiful facility that will complement the high level of care provided by the staff of Pioneer Manor," said Deputy Mayor Louise Portelance, Chair of the Pioneer Manor Management Committee.

"Today’s official construction launch has taken us one giant step closer to our dream of developing a Seniors Campus in the City of Greater Sudbury," said Councillor Ted Callaghan, Chair of the Pioneer Manor Seniors’ Campus Committee.

The Pioneer Manor Seniors' Campus will unite community partners to create the first, comprehensive, long-term care and wellness centre of its kind for senior citizens in Northern Ontario. Partners in the Pioneer Manor Seniors’ Campus include the Alzheimer Society, Laurentian University, Cambrian College, Collège Boréal, Sudbury Regional Hospital, the Northeast Mental Health Centre, the Canadian Mental Health Association, the Community Care Access Centre and St. Joseph’s Health Centre.

"Pioneer Manor is celebrating 50 years of caring in our community and this facility, thanks to the capital redevelopment project, will be well positioned to meet the growing needs of our citizens," said Councillor Ron Dupuis, a member of the Pioneer Manor Management Committee.