6 new long-term care homes to be built in Halifax area

Six new long-term care homes are being built in the Halifax-area as Nova Scotia's aging population continues to grow.

Nearly2,000 Nova Scotiansare waiting for a spot in a long-term care home, including 290 who are waiting from acute care beds in hospital, according to Barbara Adams, minister of seniors and long-term care.

She was in Lower Sackville, N.S., on Wednesday toannouncethe sixlocations for the new facilities,as part of the province'spledge to bring more long-term care beds to the province.

"Many of these rooms, approximately 800, will be right here in the central zone where our senior population is growing at the fastest rate, and the need for long-term care is greatest," Adams said.

In total, the six homes announcedtoday will add720 rooms to the municipality, each with a private bathroom. Two of the new facilities will be in Dartmouth, two in Bedford, and one each in Tantallon and Lower Sackville. Construction has already begun at some of the sites.

A seventh site in the Halifax-area is still being negotiated, and is expected to add another 90 beds.

They're set to open in 2025, and each room will cost the province about $140,000 peryear to operate.

The projectsare among 34 new and replacement facilities planned across the province, which are expected tobe ready by 2027 andbring the count of new and replacement rooms to 3,500.