Construction has begun on a new 54,000 square foot, state-of-the-art Chatham-Kent Children’s Treatment Center (CTC CK).
The Ontario Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services is providing $59 million in funding for this $65 million project, which aims to provide thousands of children with special needs and their families with access to rehabilitation services close to where they live.
The fully accessible centre will replace the existing site and provide larger, modernised premises for a team of professionals offering a range of specialist rehabilitation and respite services under one roof, including:
- Speech Pathology
- Occupational therapy
- Physiotherapy
- Services for children and adolescents with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
- Audiology
- Relief services
- Ontario Autism Program Services
- Coordination of care for children and young people with diverse and/or complex special needs
- Ontario Autism Program services.
Montgomery Sisam Architects Inc. designed the new centre and Norlon Builders London Ltd. was awarded the contract following a fair and competitive process by the CTC-CK Construction Committee and Board of Directors, with the assistance of Colliers Project Management.
“We are honoured to receive this important contract,” says Jeremy Valeriote of Norlon Builders London Ltd. “We recognise how important this new facility is to the Chatham-Kent community and are proud to be a part of it.”
The new facility will also feature full geothermal systems for heating and cooling, including a therapy pool built to LEED standards and certification, and indoor and outdoor programming spaces.
In keeping with the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, the new building will also feature a multi-purpose prayer room, an incense room, a footbath, ceiling lifts and a large turning radius for people with mobility aids.
The new building will be 1.75 kilometers from the current location and will be more than twice as large.
“We will be able to process our caseload more efficiently, allowing us more time to provide care and reduce wait times,” said Donna Litwin-Makey, the center’s executive director.
CTC-CK currently has 4,023 cases and 785 patients on the waiting list.
To raise the remainder of the estimated cost, Litwin-Makey said, “significant funds have been raised to date by our very generous Chatham-Kent community, and a campaign to complete the project is planned for this fall.”
Completion is planned for spring 2026.
