The Lonewater Farm program provides a rural, addictions recovery setting for men who require a longer-term residential setting. (Photo: Submitted/Horizon Health Network)
A long-term residential addiction recovery centre in the Saint John area will move to a new location this fall.
Horizon Health Network is relocating the program from Lonewater Farm in Nerepis to its Ridgewood campus in Saint John.
Jean Daigle, vice-president of community for Horizon, said part of the reason is the condition of the buildings at Lonewater Farm.
“These are cottage-like buildings and these have been around since the late 1960s. For us to keep track in terms of maintenance, repairs and what-not, it’s become quite a challenge for us,” said Daigle.
Daigle said the move will also improve services for those needing residential care when recovering from addictions to drugs, alcohol, opiates, cocaine, methamphetamine and other substances.
Ridgewood houses a full suite of addiction and mental health services, including detox, counselling and rehab.
Daigle said the new centre will have 14 beds compared to the 23 beds currently in operation at Lonewater Farm.
“We believe that with the fact that we’ll be able to offer more in-depth services on the Ridgewood campus will probably allow us to better use those beds in terms of having people complete the treatment and be back in the community successfully,” he said.
Horizon will spend around $300,000 to renovate one of the existing buildings at Ridgewood into a recovery centre.
Daigle said all of the existing jobs at Lonewater Farm will transition to the Ridgewood campus.
As for what will happen with the Lonewater Farm property, Daigle said no formal decisions have been made.
“There’s no doubt it is a significant piece of land that’s out there and there are decisions to be made around that but nothing has been decided yet,” he said.
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