Lutheran Aged Care Albury has completed a $29 million, 4.5-year renewal of its 120-bed Dellacourt aged care home on the NSW-Victorian border – achieving a contemporary facility for about half the cost of a new build.
Planning began in 2018 after the provider identified Dellacourt – the largest aged care home in Albury – as needing significant upgrades to meet modern consumer expectations.
The staged refurbishment allowed residents to remain on site throughout, with the 25-year-old Memory Support Unit rebuilt and the wider 122-bed complex redesigned for efficiency. Travel times for staff were reduced, and kitchen and laundry services relocated more centrally and out of sight.
CEO Wendy Rocks said Dellacourt’s “good bones” made it an ideal candidate for renovation. “This was a $29 million project, but it has been so worth it. The finished product is beautiful inside and out and cleverly designed,” she told The Weekly SOURCE.
The project has also delivered a clear financial uplift. Dellacourt’s RADs now reach $700,000 across six pricing levels, compared with $550,000 at Lutheran’s Yallaroo home and $450,000 at Emily Gardens in southern NSW.
The upgrade was completed at under $250,000 per bed – less than half the estimated $500,000 cost of a new build in regional Australia. Architect Lara Calder, of CalderFlower Architects said, “You don’t always get a better building by building new. It’s good value.”
Amenities including a hairdressing salon, café, and wellness centre will be commercially leased. Hansen Yuncken were builders on the project.