The construction company Rand & Tuulberg will build a new care home complex in Narva, consisting of 12 small family-type buildings. In such housing, older people will be able to feel more independent and communicate with each other, city officials said. Construction work should be completed by spring 2026.
The new care home will appear between Paju School and Pushkin Street, next to the Narva Children’s Home, which also consists of family-type houses. It will be managed by the Narva Center for Social Work, which includes an orphanage and a currently operating care home, as well as municipal shelters for children and adults.
“The Narva Center for Social Work has extensive experience in this field of services, which will allow us to launch all work processes in a new house much faster than when creating a completely new organization,” noted the director of the Narva Department of Social Assistance, Kristi Mürk.
One hundred elderly people who need constant care will be able to live in the new houses. Ten houses will be residential – ten people in each, in single and double rooms. Concerts, joint celebrations and other events will be held in a separate house. And in another house there will be a nurse’s office, as well as a laundry and other utility rooms.
More than 9 million from various sources
The Department of Municipal Affairs signed a construction contract on October 24. Rand & Tuulberg will receive 7.6 million euros for the work (including VAT).
Anastasia Handoga from the Narva Department of Development and Economics explained that creating a new care home in Narva will require not only construction, but also the purchase of medical equipment, furniture and other necessary things. Therefore, project financing significantly exceeds construction costs.
Part of the costs will be covered by the funds: the city will receive 784 thousand euros from the Just Transition Fund, another 407 thousand will be added as the state supports the construction of municipal buildings with zero energy consumption.
However, the main part will be paid by the city, whose contribution will amount to up to 8.1 million euros. The city authorities will take these funds on credit.
The queue will decrease, but will not disappear
Another 214 elderly people from Narva live in care homes elsewhere in Estonia, making it more difficult for relatives to visit them. This is usually due to the fact that it is easier to find free space away from home.
“Of course, opening a new care home will not solve the problem completely, but it is clear that it will help at least one hundred people in need of round-the-clock care and their relatives and friends, and this is already a very large number,” said Christie Mürk.
In an operating care home in Narva, a place in a double room costs 1,155 euros per month, of which 542 euros are not compensated by the local government, but must be paid by the client himself or his relatives. For guests with dementia, the price is higher – 1265 euros, of which 723 is self-financing.
In the new care home, prices will basically be the same, since they are set by the city government for services in the administrative territory of Narva, and not for a specific home.
“But since the new care home also provides single rooms, which are not available at all in the existing one, then naturally there will be a different price for such more comfortable conditions,” added Christi Mürk.
Why did the city decide to invest in a new care home now, although the problem of queues has existed for many years?
“It is no longer possible to postpone it any longer: the aging of the population has been progressing at a very rapid pace recently, the number of people with dementia syndrome is growing, and currently we have a very high demand for care home services. People call us and come to us who, faced with the fact that the condition of their loved one has suddenly deteriorated sharply, understand that they cannot provide him with either proper care or the proper level of safety. And everyone has their own special story…” said Christy Mürk.
According to her, society is obliged to support these people, allow them to be full-fledged members of society, and provide decent living conditions for a person in need of round-the-clock care, taking into account his needs and characteristics. “Actually, this is the main reason. An additional advantage in making the decision to build now is the possibility of obtaining financing as part of the green transition,” noted Mürk.
Rand & Tuulberg is also building an apartment building in Narva over the river, with views of two fortresses. Previously, the company built the Vaba Lava theater center and a river promenade in the border town.
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Source: www.dv.ee
