Recently-announced plans by the provincial government to spend $70 million to upgrade sprinkler systems in seniors' facilities is welcome news, says Sam Smalldon, CAO of Mountain View Seniors' Housing (MVSH).
The new funding was announced on Oct. 29. It comes in the wake of a fire at a seniors' home in L'Isle-Verte, Que. that killed more than 30 residents and injured more than a dozen others in January 2014.
Seniors housing boards across the province are being asked to make submissions for funding for upgrades by Dec. 31.
MVSH operates four lodges in the region. It owns the Mount View Lodge in Olds and the Aspen Ridge Lodge in Didsbury, while Foothills Lodge in Sundre and the Chinook Winds Seniors Lodge facility in Carstairs are owned by the province.
Although the lodges in Olds, Sundre and Didsbury all have sprinkler systems in place, the Carstairs lodge will need to have sprinklers installed and MVSH will be making application for funding for that project, said Smalldon.
“Back in January we had written a letter to the government to express our concerns about the lack of sprinklers, specifically at Chinook Winds Lodge,” said Smalldon. “It's the only one of our lodges that does not have sprinklers. So we will be making application for this funding for Chinook Winds.”
As well as the lodge in Carstairs, MVSH will also be making application for funding to install sprinklers in the approximately 150 seniors' self-contained housing units, he said.
Until the assessments are done, the total estimated cost of the Carstairs and unit upgrades will not be known, he said.
“The process they've outlined is to do assessments and then submit requests based on assessments. And they then will prioritize based on assessments,” he said.
“We will do a complete assessment (of all MVSH facilities) and make sure that if there is an area that needs attention, we will make an application for coverage,” he said.
In announcing the funding, Premier Jim Prentice said: “The issue of seniors' safety is very personal for me, and I made it clear that when I became premier I would instruct my ministers to act quickly and decisively to remedy this situation.”
Wildrose Innisfail-Sylvan Lake MLA Kerry Towle is her party's seniors' critic. She has called on the government to address any shortcomings in the sprinkler systems at provincial seniors' lodges.
Alberta Liberal seniors' critic Dr. David Swann said: “I believe it would be much better if the government implemented the Alberta Liberal policy instead, which calls on the government of Alberta to mandate the installation of fire-suppression systems such as automatic sprinklers in all facilities primarily used for housing seniors and other vulnerable persons in order to protect them from fire.”
