Exercise Facilities expansion & move

These tiled showers are just a small glimpse into the new exercise facilties in the Wheel.  The large exercise room will have comfort under foot with resistance flooring to cushion against shock absorption and provide warmth.  Check back soon to see the work in progress

FEATURE WALL

In this photo you can see the impressive statement this Feature Wall will make.

Drywallers are getting ready to prime the walls.

FEATURE WALLS

Office staff were excited today to get a glimpse of the interior work in progress in the Wheel Addition courtesy of our Community Manager's camera.   The heating system is in place, electrical has been roughed in, all the windows have been installed and the drywallers are now sanding the walls for their primer coat.  

However, the most dramatic part of this new addition is the beautiful stacked interior stone interior wall which is breathtaking!   This stone feature wall is on the interior connection between the old and new buildings and on an entrance wall of the new addition ~ a great first impression from the new doorway and ramp.   The exterior is being clad in a beautiful cement board and will feature panels of the same stone. 

ENJOYING MOTHER NATURE AT HER BEST

As we say goodbye to winter, we can't help but think of the description of March...In Like a Lamb and Out Like a Lion.   Today we experienced snow flurries, sunshine and cold winds all to greet some of residents who were returning from their winter escape as they drop by reception.

For those residents who remained home, they kept themselves entertained with the many activities and events at the halls and enjoyed watching the season unfold.   Hayley & Stacey Morning are regular followers to our blog and have informed us of how they have made the best of their long winter enjoying all that Mother Nature has to offer.  Being surrounded by nature in our rural setting residents are witness to many wildlife from squirrels to rabbits, a variety of birds, the occasional deer gracefully seen at dusk or listening to some coyotes howling in the distance, but the most entertaining visitors for Hayley & Stacey this year have been the large feather friends who graced their property along the treed buffer to the farmer's field...Wild Turkeys!  (photo supplied by Hayley & Stacey)

Hayley informed us they enjoyed watching the turkeys arrive in a variety of sizes and numbers throughout the winter, keeping them entertained for hours.  With glimpses of Spring weather just around the corner we know we will be seeing the park come alive as nature unfolds with trees getting their new foliage, Spring flowers in bloom and residents enjoying catching up with their neighbours as they stop to chat or wave as they walk by. 

Every season can be wonderful when we sit back and savour all that is around us.  Take a moment today to just enjoy the sunshine or whatever weather is thrown at us as we each contemplate plans for the season ahead.   Hopefully your life is full of moments that give you great pleasure in your surroundings.

Our Addition Update

For our residents who winter away you may have been watching the progress on line of the wheel Recreation Centre.  For those of us anxiously watching each day, it seemed to take a long time to see the building going up but when you think of the process of applying for permits, foundation digging, pouring footings, constructing the walls floor by floor, a lot has happened!

The roof has gone on, insulation has been blown in, the building is now wrapped and windows are being installed this week.  One of the exciting new items for these windows will be the mortorized blinds that will be installed on the clerestory windows shown in the photo.  Just think at the touch of a button they can be opened and closed ~ ah the joys of modern technology.

Raising The Roof

The roof has finally been added to the new addition of the Wheel Recreation Centre.     

As you can see from the photo of the existing building of the Wheel the new addition will seamlessly blend into the existing structure and a new facelift on the exterior of the existing building will make this an impressive first impression as your enter our community.

Dominion Tankard Give Away



William & Elsa Dancer

Sandycove is pleased to give away tickets to an event in our local community, the Dominion Tankard 2013.   Sandycove residents were asked to call in and answer a curling related question.   The first two callers to correctly answer won a pair of tickets each.

Congratulations to Elsa Dancer & George Yanakeff who both won tickets to The Dominion Men’s Curling Championships, the premier curling event for Ontario to be held in Barrie in Feb 2013 at the Barrie Molson Centre. 



George Yanakeff

Both of our Sandycove residents and a guest will watch as eleven teams representing Ontario will play down to an exciting final that will determine the team representing Ontario in the national Brier.  The action will feature local curling icon Glen Howard.

 

Don’t forget to watch the Sandycove TV Channel 20 for other contests throughout the year. 

 

Life Begins Now ~ Why Wait?



Construction Update

 

Our mild winter is not slowing down the ongoing construction of the addition to the Wheel Recreation Center in the south park.  The foundation is poured, the walls have gone up and the roof is next.  The addition has been designed to fit seamlessly into the existing building adding two floors of recreational space. 

Heather Rice has been meeting with contractors to keep the project on target and picking out the finishing touches with suppliers.  Anticipation is building as both office and maintenance staff check weekly to see the progress along with the residents who glance at the construction teams daily as they enter our community. The addition has been designed to fit seamlessly into the existing building, adding two additional floors of recreational space for resident use.

Heather Rice has been meeting with contractors to keep the project on target and picking out the finishing touches with suppliers. Anticipation is building as both office and maintenance staff check weekly to see the progress along with residents who glance at the construction teams daily as they leave and enter our community.

SEASONS GREETINGS

We are always pleased to hear from our residents.

"To the Management and Staff of Sandycove Acres

After moving here two years ago, my wife Christine and I cannot get over how helpful, pleasant and friendly you have all been to us.  We can't think of anywhere else we would like to live.  

To you and your families we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year."

Jack Blenkinsop & Christine Harvey-Blenkinsop

SANDYCOVE WELCOMES NEW RESIDENTS

Sandycove was pleased to host our annual New Resident Christmas Luncheon recently to welcome new residents to our community,   some moving here from as far away as St. John's Newfoundland but many residents from the surrounding local areas of Barrie, Innisfil and Newmarket who wish to remain living close to their former neighbourhood with ties to family and friends.  

Residents were treated to a hot turkey luncheon, entertainment by our talented Sandycove residents, music and exhibits showcasing all the activities, clubs and entertainment available for residents to enjoy while living in Sandycove. 

We are always pleased to see returning residents who lived here for a short while, then moved out to be closer to their kids, then return because they missed the camaraderie of friends and neighbours who had similar interests.   Many tell us they have "moved back home" when they return to Sandycove and once living here could not replace the community feeling anywhere else.  

Management & staff are extremely proud of our community, the awards we have won for quality & service and for the residents who choose to call Sandycove their home.   That same feeling is felt amongst our staff as many are long term employees with 30 & 25 years of service and the family feeling of caring starts from management and trickles down amongst staff - we too feel at home here and are blessed to have the opportunity to work under the Rice & Robertson families of Sandycove Acres Limited.  And as we see the next generation unfold with the same care and attention to the growth and development of Sandycove we know that Sandycove Acres will continue to be a community that remains in the forefront of excellence & care.

 

QUEEN'S DIAMOND JUBILEE AWARD

Congratulations to our second Sandycove resident ROBERT MOLYNEAUX for also being awarded the prestigious Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal this summer for his countless hours of community service, dedication and involvement with minorities.   Robert is a retired Deputy Chief of Police with over 30 years of service on the force.  Robert was nominated by the Chief of Police, Toronto Police Services, followed up by local politicians.    

Thank you Robert for your dedication and service to the community.  We are beaming with pride!

Sandycove Resident Recipient of Jubilee Medal

Sandycove is proud to recognize the efforts of our resident HARRY BOYER on being awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his voluntary service with Habitat for Humanity.   

 Harry Boyer is a very seasoned volunteer at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Barrie.  He has helped with demolition sites and many other projects throughout the years and at age 92 Harry is still contributing to Habitat. 

 The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal serves to honour significant contributions and achievements by Canadians in their communities.  Recipients of this award are chosen through a nomination process conducted by both the federal and Ontario governments. This (Diamond Jubilee) medal has only happened once before when Queen Victoria reached it in 1897— the likelihood of it happening again is not in our lifetimes. 

This is a wonderful day to celebrate community members and wonderful Canadians.  Congratulations Harry Boyer, we are proud of your efforts and dedication to giving back to the community and proud to say you are one of the many dedicated residents living in Sandycove. 

Living on the Edge

 

 

 

 Sandycove Residents like to live on the edge of excitement.   We enjoyed receiving this photo of Carol McCarthy spending the day in Toronto with her niece Joy.   Both ladies experienced the Edge Walk from the roof of the CN Tower restaurant 1,168ft above ground this past summer.   

 This is a great example of the positive attitude of Sandycove residents.   Thank you, Carol for sharing your enthusiasm for life with us proving moving to Sandycove does not end your life experiences, but provide you with the time to embrace more adventures along the way.

Expanded Recreation Facilities

Permits have been released and construction has begun. 

We are very excited in Sandycove to start work on the expansion of our south park recreation centre known as “The Wheel”.   Fencing around the construction site is drawing a lot of daily attention from our residents as they watch in anticipation the stages of construction. Project completion is scheduled for spring 2013. 

 

Our new expansion consists of two floors:  the main level will include a side entry with coat closets, washrooms and an activity room that can be divided into smaller rooms for separate smaller events when needed. 

The lower level consists of a new fitness centre, open space for aerobics plus men’s & women’s changes room, showers and washrooms.  Additional storage areas are located on both the main and lower levels of the building.

 

 Watch our blog to follow the construction stages.

CUSTOMER FEEDBACK

We are thrilled to post comments from our residents.   This post was submitted to our administration office for posting on the Sandycove In-house Community Channel.

"HAPPY SANDYCOVE DAY TO ME" " I bought in Sandycove 15 years ago and haven't regretted it for one minute.  Lucky Me!"

CAROL M.

Emerging Sandycove Artists

Sandycove continues to beam with pride with the talent of our residents from the Photography and Art clubs who put on a great show & sale each year, to the many residents who sell their handiwork in the annual Fall Craft Show which is one of the highly anticipated events for Barrie and Innisfil residents to attend prior to Christmas.

The entrance to the Sandycove Woodshop is adorned with a large custom made Totem Pole created by the Woodcarvers club.  Our latest display of talent is by Robert Jenkins, a north park resident who has taken his chain saw to carve animals, birds and tree spirits into old trees throughout Sandycove.   Robert drew a lot of attention lately as cars slowed down to view the newest carving in progress at the South Park entrance.   Residents came with cameras to take pictures and just watch in amazement as Robert used the chain saw with such ease you would think he was carving butter, but it was the trunk of a fallen tree to release a tree spirit and owl.  

Robert’s previous carving of a black bear & tree spirit in the North Park continues to be a great hit as residents and staff alike enjoy walking by to admire the carving.  Who knows what animals lay hidden in the trees throughout our community, only time will tell, we do know that when the scaffolds go up and the buzzing sound of chain saw starts again, crowds will drop by to see another beautiful piece of outdoor art appear in Sandycove. 

 
Maybe it is the appealing surroundings of our small town rural setting that draws artists and inner talent to emerge.  We do know Sandycove Acres is a vibrant community of talented & passionate people.

Sandycove Acres Wins Business of The Year Award

Sandycove Acres has played an active part in Innisfil community for over 40 years and was honoured to be the recipient of Innisfil’s Chamber of Commerce Award on February 3^rd for Business of the Year presented by MP Peter Van Loan, MPP Julia Munro & Town of Innisfil Mayor Barb Baguley.

Innisfil has been very good to Sandycove for 40 years and Sandycove Acres has enjoyed the opportunity of staying involved and giving back to the Innisfil community and providing an adult lifestyle community to over 1,800 fifty-plus residents.   The Sandycove community has 1,245 homes in a park like rural setting in the picturesque town of Innisfil on the shores of Lake Simcoe.

Sandycove believes in providing the opportunity to enrich the lives of seniors through activities and friendship.   Sandycove has three very active recreation centres for their residents, giving them the opportunity to meet their neighbours, stay active, learn new skills & believes in encouraging residents and staff to enrich their lives by getting involved in their community.  

Sandycove Acres Limited has given back to local organizations within the town of Innisfil through clubs, services and charities, sponsoring local youth organizations for soccer, baseball & hockey.    They believe in getting involved in the community and have worked with the Town of Innisfil to spearhead the Leadership Committee which was responsible for the fundraising of the New Innisfil Recreation Centre and have generously donated to both this project and RVH hospital. 

Each year they have generously sponsored local clubs & events which have included Communities In Bloom, ICECORP Innisfil Community Events Corporation, Pitch-in, Summerfest, Winterfest, and Santa Clause Parades.   They have sponsored large donations of trees to outdoor reading libraries at both Cookstown Library & Sunnybrae Public School. 

The owners of Sandycove Acres take pride in the Sandycove Acres community making it a place they would want to live in and playing an important part of Innisfil’s community. 

THANK YOU for Voting Us #1

Sandycove Acres Turns 40 Years Young!

Sandycove Acres held a mammoth Pig Roast for our residents this past September to help celebrate 40 years of service as an Active Adult Lifestyle Community to the residents of Sandycove Acres since 1971. 

 Over 1,400 of our residents attended this event and enjoyed stopping by our historical tent to hear the stories and view the pictures of how we grew from our original 100 homes in 1971 to over 1,254 homes today.  

 
The Fig Leaf Jazz Band entertained the crowds while the pigs roasted on spits overnight for this two day event.  One of the popular items was a stop by an old fashioned ice cream parlour providing our residents with hand scooped ice cream.   Shaw’s catering wowed the crowds with their wagon buffet, complete with a roasted pig on display as the star attraction. 

General Managers Rod Rice and Trevor Robertson welcomed the crowds and spoke about how the community was founded by their fathers Max Rice and David Robertson.  “Sandycove is a vibrant community…we’re running it with all the same family values”.  Special guests included our MP for York Simcoe, the Hon.  Peter Van Loan, MPP Julia Munro, Innisfil Mayor Barb Baguley & Members of Council.

Four of our current homeowners Jack & Aileen Ross, Eileen Hardy & Lois Franks were all recognized as original residents who chose Sandycove as their retirement community for the past 40 years.   All of these residents purchased a Royal model home in 1971 and still live in the same house 40 years later!   Jack Ross also celebrated his 100^th birthday & a milestone 80^th anniversary shortly after this event.  

Staff also enjoyed meeting the multiple generations of families who have chosen to live in Sandycove as they become empty nesters and/or retired.  This is a great testament to the vibrant & active lifestyle Sandycove has to offer its residents.

SANDYCOVE Fashion Show Goes Pink



Each year a generous group of Sandycove men & women donate all their time & energy to organize a very successful Community Fashion Show to support RVH Hospital Cancer Centre. This fashion show has a different approach to stocking items for the show by allowing residents to clean out their closets over items that have “shrunk” over the past year to donate to this two day sale & show.

Preparations begin months ahead and the Sandycove Ladies run a well organized army of volunteers to gather all the clothes, accessories, jewellery & small home decorating items then spend days sorting & pricing items for sale while the men set up all the racks of clothing & tables for the big event. There is also a barbeque lunch for all the hungry shoppers.

The real fun begins Saturday evening with the fashion show. Sandycove residents model some of the items donated to the sale and the long awaited grand finale is the men’s comical skit on the women’s fashions. The sale continues with a final day of everything you can fit in a shopping bag for a small fee. All remaining items are donated to local shelters & goodwill.

This charity event donates 100% of the money raised from ticket & clothing sales to the Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre at Royal Victoria Hospital. Last year this group raised $6,525.00 at their event. This brings their generous total to $36,160.00 in donations from past fashion shows from 2005.

Putting on this event is no easy task and shows the generous heart of our Sandycove community as they rally behind community causes. The Sandycove residents are the heart of Innisfil – embracing life, enhancing the lives of others and reaching out to help those who need a helping hand.

Congratulations to the many hard working women and men of Sandycove.

Celebrating 40 Years

Many of the longer term homeowners of Sandycove Acres will know the ownership structure of the company and the visionary management role that was played by Maxwell Rice and David Robertson, for some of you youngsters, here is a short history. Maxwell Rice and David Robertson owned a private 4 passenger plane together and they both owned cottages on Lake Simcoe nearby. They decided that they needed a landing strip for the plane and bought a farm on Lockhart Road.


It turned out that the land use bylaws of the day permitted the development of certain residential communities on the farm. Maxwell, coming from the house construction industry, and David coming from the manufactured housing industry, put their combined expertise together and formulated a vision of what has become one of the largest Adult Lifestyle Communities in Canada – Sandycove Acres!

That was in 1971. For more than 32 years, Maxwell Rice and Dave Robertson were actively involved in the management and development of Sandycove Acres.

In many ways Sandycove Acres Limited is a family company. As such it is a closely held company with many family members taking an active part in the operation of the company. That family approach has influenced the character of Sandycove Acres. It has helped to ensure that ownership remained in the same hands for 40 years. It has also contributed to the “hands on” approach which management has taken over the years, and has helped to continue the longevity of the management team and the integrity of the community. Many of you will know that Rod Rice and Trevor Robertson, sons of founding owners have held senior management positions since 2001.

Trevor & I were childhood friends, went our separate ways in business, and now find ourselves working together here at Sandycove Acres. We share the responsibilities of General Managers working in conjunction with Denyse Beattie, Steve Tompkins and the Sandycove Acres staff. Maxwell Rice passed away in 2006. David Roberson continues to play an advisory role.

Trevor and I appreciate the confidence shown by Sandycovers in the whole management team here at Sandycove. Our job is to ensure the success of Sandycove Acres. We intend to do that to the best of our ability. We will measure that success by the degree of satisfaction that you as Sandycovers have in your decision to live here in this fine community. We look forward to meeting and working with many of you in the upcoming year.

Rod Rice