BANCROFT: A long-awaited seniors residence in Bancroft is going ahead, the town’s mayor assures.
The building planned by Garden Retirements Development Inc. will go up on Newkirk Boulevard, next to the Bancroft Curling Club.
In a recent interview, Mayor Paul Jenkins told Moose FM that the project is still in the site plan development stage, but zoning approval has been given. He says groundbreaking could begin in the spring.
The building represents one of five housing projects underway in Bancroft, as the town tries to limit a housing crunch.
Jenkins said the town is trying to bring in private developers, as new builds can add tax revenue and ease pressure on household taxpayers.
He also said the town is working with Hastings County over the long term to build more rent-to-income geared housing.
This is the project that was originally planned for the former IGA lot downtown; land the town calls Block 68.
The residence was announced for that lot back in 2020, but the developer later determined that site would not work.
Block 68 has since been severed and two parts of it were sold to other companies. The sales will allow for the expansion of the IDA drug store next door and for LifeLabs to build an extension for another clinic, Jenkins said.
Meanwhile, the town is keeping the back portion of the land to develop a “pedestrian-friendly” area near the river.