St Agnes’ Parish has lodged Development Applications (DAs) with Port Macquarie-Hastings Council to refurbish Emmaus on Colonel Barney Drive and to develop the vacant land next to it as a village style community for those living with dementia and related conditions.

Chief Executive Officer of St Agnes’ Parish, Adam Spencer, said the need for the DAs arose from the development of the Catholic Care of the Aged (CCA) Masterplan, which is the Parish’s strategy for the provision of its aged care services to the local community for decades to come.

“As the longest-serving and largest provider of aged care in the region, the Parish is committed to addressing the changing needs of our community as it ages and our CCA Masterplan allows us to plan for this investment.”

“The CCA Masterplan includes the upgrading of existing services and the construction of new ones,” Mr Spencer said.

“In particular, we identified the need for the provision of purpose-built amenities for dementia care as being a critical and growing need in our local community.”

“After extensive national and international research, plans were drawn up to meet this need through the development of small, group accommodation in a village-type community setting, as home for up to 93 residents in a safe and secure environment on the vacant land next to Emmaus.”

“We believe this style of a village community will be the first of its kind on the NSW Mid-North Coast and in the broader NSW regional area,” he added.
The DA to upgrade the existing Emmaus building involves an internal refurbishment program that will see each room have its own ensuite as well as the construction of a new driveway access point into Emmaus on Colonel Barney Drive.

Peter Orford who is Project Manager for the CCA Masterplan said that the Parish had written to neighbours, residents and families of Emmaus to gain their feedback on the proposals.

“The DAs, if approved, will mean a lot to the community, but we need feedback from people living in and around Emmaus to make sure we do everything we can to minimise the impact that construction may have on them,” Mr Orford said.

A separate DA for the development of a Café at St Agnes’ Village near the Village Management Office, in Lochinvar Place was also lodged with Council. This application came at the request of Village residents after the recent closure of a café in the vicinity due to the retirement of its operator.

The Parish lodged the three DAs under the name ‘St Agnes’ Care & Lifestyle’ with Port Macquarie-Hastings Council late in December.

Anyone wishing to provide feedback can do so by contacting Project Manager, Peter Orford on (02) 6588 7444 or via email at [email protected]