Building Ontario Fund closes financing to expand four rural LTC homes

The Building Ontario Fund (BOF) has reached financial close on an agreement with Arch Corporation (Arch) that bundles four loans to redevelop and expand long-term care (LTC) homes in smaller communities in Ontario. Manulife financed the project in partnership with BOF to help accelerate priority infrastructure development in the province.

“We are rapidly building capacity across the province, and thanks to financing secured by the Building Ontario Fund, the 576 beds to be updated or added to these four communities support our goal of delivering 58,000 new and redeveloped long-term care beds by 2028,” said Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Minister of Long-Term Care.

The financing includes four loans totalling $265.5 million, split evenly between BOF and Manulife, to support construction costs for much-needed LTC homes in small communities. Bundling the four homes enabled the inclusion of smaller projects that would not otherwise have been built. This approach not only balanced risk and scale but also enabled third-party capital to invest in the Arch homes alongside BOF.

“In partnership with Manulife, our bundling strategy allowed us to deliver more long-term care beds across the province than would have been feasible using solely market-based financing,” said Michael Fedchyshyn, CEO of the Building Ontario Fund. “We expect to build upon this financing model and secure further interest from institutional lenders and other partners interested in developing long-term care infrastructure.”

The four homes will collectively provide 576 beds—276 new and 300 redeveloped—to help meet the growing demand for long-term care in underserved areas. Construction is underway and all four homes are expected to be completed by early 2028.

“Bringing additional scale to long-term care housing in markets that need alternative and additional beds is a compelling investment for the communities, and it is an exciting and rewarding project to participate in alongside the Building Ontario Fund,” said Manulife’s Bruce Anderson, AVP Project Finance & Infrastructure.

“We’re proud to be working with the Building Ontario Fund and Manulife to bring these much-needed homes to life,” said Dan Argiros, CEO of Arch Corporation. “This partnership is a model for how public and private capital can come together to serve the public good.”

The four-home BOF-Manulife bundle includes the following development projects in Arch’s portfolio:

• Amherstburg: 160-bed home (101 new beds)
• Lancaster: 128-bed home (68 new beds)
• Prescott: 128-bed home (68 new beds)
• Tay Valley Township: 160-bed home (39 new beds)

Featured image: (Building Ontario Fund)