Adria Care, formed by the Croatian community of Canberra and Queanbeyan, has submitted a development application to build 22 new independent living units and a new 102-bed residential aged care facility.
The plan is for the site of the Croatian Catholic Church and Community Hall in Figtree, an inner western suburb of Wollongong.
“The facility has been in development for at least three years to this point, but it’s been a vision of the organisation for some time to deliver this to the Wollongong community,” said Adria Care CEO Stephanie Tyrell.
“We are hoping to turn the first sod by the end of this year or early next year and it would take around 18 months to two years to complete.”
The proposed village will feature two to four-storey buildings and will include a new community public square, 150 on-site parking spaces and facilities including a gym, wellness centre, cafe, men’s shed and multipurpose cinema room.
Adria Care’s first village in Stirling, Canberra, was officially opened in 1994 after years of voluntary work undertaken by members of the local community, both in the administration and building of the village. It has 36 Independent Living Units and offers residential care for 42 residents, including two dedicated respite rooms and a Special Care Unit.
