Russell Meadows eight-unit expansion set to open in January

The newly-completed, eight-unit expansion to the Russell Meadows housing complex in Kincardine, is set to open in January.
 

Jack Poulin of the Russell Meadows Non-Profit Accommodations Inc. board of directors, allowed the Kincardine Record a glance inside the $1.3-million expansion which is complete except the floors have to be redone. Lighting also has to be added to the east and west side of the building, and in the southeast end of the parking lot.

The eight, one-bedroom, affordable housing units include two that are wheelchair-accessible, said Poulin. "Four are already rented, and our first tenant will be Linda McCullough."

Each apartment has a good-sized bedroom with a walk-in closet, a linen closet, utility room, living room, dining room, kitchen with a pantry, a bathroom and a closet beside the front door. Each has a heating and air-conditioning unit and a heat exchanger.

Each wheelchair-accessible apartment has wider doors, ramped access to the front door, a roll-in shower, and different appliances. These units are also larger.

Poulin said rent for the apartments will be under $600 per month, including the hot water heater rental, plus utilities.

The first tenant will be moving in Jan. 1, with a grand opening of the expansion slated for the spring, he said. The parking lot is also to be redone in the spring.

The original Russell Meadows complex was spruced up as well, with new windows and doors, and insulation upgrades. Poulin said the kitchen beside the office will be removed and the laundry room expanded to six machines, to accommodate the new tenants.

Russell Meadows was built in 1991 and has 35 residential units.. Of these, two are handicapped-accessible, 16 are one-bedroom, and the rest are an assortment of two-, three- and four-bedroom.

The board operates as a non-profit organization, providing rent-geared-to-income housing as well as market-rate housing at the complex. The expansion is considered affordable housing, charged at 80 per cent of market rate, and the target market is seniors and low-income individuals.