The City of Rockingham in Perth, WA, calls the decision to hand the 50 one-bedroom independent living Challenger Court retirement village to RAAFA as a “landmark step”.
The deal maximises the potential future development of Challenger Court and the land surrounding it, to provide opportunities for additional affordable housing that could help support future generations of Rockingham seniors.
“RAAFA has extensive experience in managing retirement living and residential care facilities, and we are confident they will be able to provide quality support and care to current and future residents of Challenger Court,” said Rockingham Mayor Deb Hamlin.
“Crucially, the City has secured a commitment from RAAFA to carry out further development on site in the future to expand accommodation and services available to the community. This will be essential to meeting the demands of our growing seniors population, which is expected to reach more than 47,000 people by 2046.”
Challenger Court was opened in the mid-1970s by the Aged Persons Homes Trust and was developed to provide affordable accommodation to ageing residents in the community. Ownership of Challenger Court transferred to the Council from the Trust in December 2006.
John Murray, RAAFA CEO, said the transfer represents RAAFA’s desire to provide quality accommodation options and an enviable lifestyle to support the increased independence, mobility and security of older West Australians.
“After working closely with City of Rockingham for many months, RAAFA is delighted to have successfully acquired Challenger Court, particularly as there is a high proportion of defence force personnel and veterans who live in the City of Rockingham area, which makes it a good fit for RAAFA,” he said.
“As we already have villages in close proximity, this transfer is a particularly good fit for our organisation as it gives us a presence between our Air Force Memorial Estate in Bull Creek and our offerings at Meadow Springs and Erskine in Mandurah. We are very excited to welcome Challenger Court into our family of RAAFA estates.”
RAAFA owns and operates six retirement villages comprising 1420 retirement living units and apartments, 19 assisted living units, 446 residential care places and 14 short stay accommodation units.
