The City of Elliot Lake was established in 1954 as a mining centre. In fact, Elliot Lake was once known as the “uranium capital of the world.”
Over the course of Elliot Lake’s history, through the boom and bust cycle of the mining industry, the community remained resilient. By the late 1980s, however, it was made clear that the days of mining in Elliot Lake would be coming to an end. The city was left with a surplus of housing and apartments with vacancy rates rising rapidly.
This is when crisis met opportunity.
It was widely known that retirees would increasingly comprise a larger segment of the Canadian population, and that many of those retirees would be looking for a special place to retire – beautiful, affordable and friendly.
Elliot Lake was an ideal retirement destination.
Success grew, and the initiative expanded.
In 1991, the Non-Profit Retirement Residences of Elliot Lake Inc. became incorporated as a non-profit corporation, and a Board of Directors was formed. The Government of Ontario provided the corporation with a grant of $7-million – $3.5-million was used to purchase half of the existing housing stock from Denison Mines and the other half was donated by Rio Algom Ltd.
The remaining $3.5-million was used to upgrade the properties, establish operations, and market Elliot Lake as a retirement destination to Ontario and the rest of the country.
Over the course of its history Elliot Lake Retirement Living has made continual improvements to the properties it owns and operates. In the last seven years alone the corporation has expended more than $20 million on upgrades and improvements to its apartment buildings and houses. This is in addition to the hundreds of thousands spent on capital, maintenance and preparation of units it makes on an annual basis.
Throughout its history, Elliot Lake Retirement Living has helped diversify the local economy. As an active community partner it has sponsored events, sports teams, assisted other groups, organizations and businesses all in an effort to increase the quality of life for all residents and to further the economic growth of the community.
The Corporation remains committed to its vision.