Construction of the facility commenced in March 2017, with the development well underway and on track for an anticipated completion in July 2018.

Planning for premier facility commenced some 10 years ago given a lack of quality self-care retirement living options that provided ongoing care and support services to residents in the region, with an extra 52 apartments going into the new construction.

At a site visit on November 17, Port Macquarie MP Leslie Williams said the ongoing construction work was great for the local economy, a sentiment echoed by Port Macquarie-Hastings Mayor Peta Pinson.

“What we are seeing in Port Macquarie is really a reflection of what we are seeing right around the state, cranes in the sky, people being in the workforce that haven’t been in the workforce previously, and we now have one of the lowest unemployment rates consistently around the country so this project is great news not just for the state but also for the local economy.

“90 percent of workers come directly from the area and that is what we want to continue to see, and when investors come to Port Macquarie they see what is happening at Garden Village which is really good for the whole economy,” Mrs Williams said.

“Congratulations to Watpac for their 90 percent employment and use of local contractors which is an excellent commitment to our local workforce and is certainly driving our economy.

“From the site visit I can’t wait to see the completion of the Garden Village expansion in the new year,” Mrs Pinson said.

Project Manager Paul Zvirzdinasm said the work is all on track.

“As we lead into Christmas the next part of the construction will move fairly quickly and people will begin to see the makings of a building over the next few weeks.

“At the moment we are averaging about 35 personnel on site everyday, but we do get up to 80-90 workers a day sometimes, particularly when we were pouring the concrete and again when we start on the internal work,” he said.

“The project has not been without its challenges but this is what we do and we are really happy that we can employ so many local electricians, plumbers, concreters, steel fitters the list goes on, but we are using as many locally based people as we can,” Mr  Zvirzdinasm said.

The project is expected to be complete by July 2018.