Maya McFadden Photo
Mary Wade Home’s new expanded campus was topped off Monday with a Christmas tree in the summer.
About nine months after the groundbreaking ceremony for the nursing home’s new 75,000 square-foot building, Mary Wade staff and board of trustee members joined outside of the site to celebrate.
The new site is across the street from the existing nursing home at 118 Clinton Ave.
Mary Wade CEO David Hunter, said the new building “will be the entity leading the Mary Wade Home into the next 100 years.” He said construction for the 84-unit building which will include 20 memory care units and 64 assisted living units has been going smoothly since its brief pause due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
David Hunter, Justin Elicker, Harold Spitzer, and Todd Renz.
Todd Renz, president of O,R&L Construction, said the outer structure’s length and height — two stories high on the south side, three on the north building, with a partial basement — are complete.
The project is on track for the building to open in May 2021 and remains on budget, said Hunter. Ann Zak was introduced as the newest staff addition as executive director of the coming-assisted living building.
“I’ve never been involved in a project that’s so collegial. Everybody there is looking to get the best thing done, no corners cut,” said Mary Wade Board of Trustees Chair Harold Spitzer, who has 40 years of architectural experience.
As the ceremony went on, construction workers continued work on the building.
Mayor Justin Elicker joined the Mary Wade and O,R&L staff for the milestone celebration and his first toppig-off ceremony. “I admire the work that you’re doing to make things work,” Elicker said.
The topping off (also known as topping out) ceremony dates back to 700 A.D., when Scandinavians topped their newly completed structures with symbols of peace, prosperity, goodwill, and good health.
The Mary Wade building was topped off with an evergreen tree and an American flag at its highest point to wish peace to the workers and future residents on the campus.
The high-performance building will have a “long-lasting” and “enduring” structure, said Renz.
(Watch the video below for the full ceremony)
Mary Wade Topping Off Ceremony
Posted by New Haven Independent on Monday, July 27, 2020