Building Ontario Fund Invests in Lancaster Long-Term Care Home
January 28, 2025
News
LANCASTER – The Building Ontario Fund has entered into an agreement in principle with Arch Corporation (Arch) to finance four new and redeveloped long-term care homes across the province, including a 128-bed home in Lancaster, Ontario. The three other homes will be located in Tay Valley Township, Prescott, and Amherstburg.
The four long-term care homes were assessed as a group to balance their overall risk and financial profile, enabling the smaller homes, in Prescott and Lancaster, to be feasible to develop. Through this innovative bundling approach, the Building Ontario Fund is once again demonstrating its role as a catalyst in advancing high-priority infrastructure projects that would not otherwise proceed. Consistent with their mandate to invest alongside external capital, the Building Ontario Fund is partnering with a major Canadian financial institution to finance the suite of projects.
“Seniors are a vital part of our community,” said Nolan Quinn, MPP for Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry. “This investment will ensure our seniors can live in a modern, state-of-the-art home close to their loved ones, while accessing excellent care.”
“Thanks to the Building Ontario Fund, Arch was able to secure the financing they needed to transform the future of long-term care for Lancaster as well as three other rural communities,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance. “The new facilities will better serve seniors and enable more of them to remain close to their families and friends.”
As the operator of the only long-term care home in Lancaster, Arch has a longstanding history of serving senior residents in the municipality. The new building will result in a larger, upgraded facility that will accommodate 128 seniors, an increase of 68 beds.
“Securing financing for projects in rural communities presents unique challenges, often due to their smaller scale,” said Michael Fedchyshyn, CEO, Building Ontario Fund. “Taking an innovative approach, as we have done by bundling four Arch properties together, we can bring institutional capital to the table and help advance vital infrastructure projects, like the long-term care homes in Prescott, Perth, Lancaster, and Amherstburg.”
“Riverdale Living is thrilled to be creating a new long-term care home in Lancaster to replace the existing facility. Thanks to the tireless support and advocacy of local residents, municipal officials, and provincial representatives, we are delighted to be moving forward with this exciting and important project for the Lancaster community. We look forward to the day we can open our doors and welcome our residents to their new home,” said Dan Argiros, CEO, Arch Corporation.
Collectively, the four long-term care homes will include 576 beds, addressing the growing demand in these communities, some of which currently lack an existing facility. Construction is set to begin at all four facilities in the first half of 2025 and be completed by late 2027.
Quick Facts
- Through wholly owned subsidiary, Riverdale Living, Arch Corporation operates 11 long-term care homes across Ontario. Since 2016, Riverdale Living has been redeveloping C-class long-term care homes into modern A-class facilities.
- The Building Ontario Fund agreement in principle with Arch Corporation will result in 276 new and 300 redeveloped beds.
- The new Lancaster long-term care home will increase the number of beds by 68, from 60 in the current facility to 128 in the new one.
- The Building Ontario Fund’s commitment includes a senior secured loan of $133.6 million to fund construction and operational costs across the four homes, subject to customary financial terms and conditions.
- The four-home bundle is another step toward meeting the Province’s target of a combined 58,000 new and redeveloped beds by 2028.
About the Building Ontario Fund
The Building Ontario Fund will facilitate the development of critical infrastructure across the province by providing financing and advisory services to public sector pension plans, other trusted institutional investors, and Indigenous communities. To address the province’s most immediate needs, the Building Ontario Fund is focused on projects within five priority sectors: affordable housing, long-term care, energy, transportation, and municipal and community infrastructure. An arms-length, board-governed Crown agency enabled by the Building Ontario Fund Act, 2024, the Building Ontario Fund is helping to build a stronger province for Ontario’s quickly growing population and lay a strong foundation for future generations.
About Arch
Arch is a Canadian-based real estate asset manager that invests on behalf of pension plans, institutional investors, and family offices. Through their subsidiary, Riverdale Living, they operate 11 long-term care homes across Ontario.