"That includes all of our common areas, all of the amenity spaces that we provide to our residents, and 71 of 113 suites," said Mel. "We are reopening the north end, which is the remaining suites, in about July 2024."
Mel said there's still a lot of work to be done on the north section.
"They've been hard at work rebuilding the third floor of the building and they are on schedule. So, it's exciting that Fairwinds could be fully reopened by July, which is just a year and a half after the fire.
Mel said the north section is where the fire started and where most of the damage was sustained.
"The rest of the building was mostly water damaged, and then the south and central we decided to do upgrades and renovations while we were closed," she said. "There's been a lot of really good feedback from the community at our open house back in November, I think we had just about over 200 attendees. The comments on the renovations were really good to hear."
Mel said about a dozen residents returned after the fire.
"There were a number of residents who we could just no longer meet their care needs. People were also just comfortable where we had helped to find them homes. We totally understand that someone who is in their 90s doesn't want to make a move within two years and we are just glad that they're safe, happy, and making the choices that are best for them," said Mel.
She said past residents joined current residents for a Christmas dinner at the lodge over the holidays.
Mel said 30 firefighters who responded to the fire also attended an appreciation lunch with residents back in November.