General News
3 November, 2026
Aged home set to double
MAREEBA’S aged care home is planning to double its capacity to service the region’s ageing population.
Respect Mareeba Gardens currently has 62 beds, including a dedicated 16-bed memory support unit, but more is needed in the area with so many people choosing to spend their senior years in smaller country towns.
Chief executive officer and managing director, Jason Binder, told The Express in September that the situation facing the Tablelands and Mareeba Shire “mirrors a challenge playing out across regional Australia”.
“More people are choosing to retire to and age in communities like Mareeba, and the number of local aged care places hasn’t kept pace with that growth,” he said.
Nationally, around 3,000 older Australians were currently in hospital because there wasn’t an aged care bed available for them, and Australia was building only around 800 new aged care beds a year when roughly 10,000 were needed annually just to keep pace with demand.
“As the oldest baby boomers reach their 80s, that gap is only going to widen,” Mr Binder said.
The Respect Mareeba home has now lodged an application with Mareeba Shire Council to expand the facility by 67 more aged care beds in a new accommodation block as the first stage of a broader masterplan to upgrade the home.
“The new accommodation block will also enable future stages of the masterplan by providing decant capacity, allowing residents to relocate while refurbishment and upgrade works are undertaken within the existing accommodation wings running East to West,” the application states.
The new connection between the existing facility and the proposed building will require the removal of a single bedroom staff dwelling and the existing chapel.
The chapel will be replaced with the “Fernery”, allowing it to be more inclusive for quiet reflection rather than solely religious activities, the application states.
The existing northern A Block currently projects into a proposed courtyard area so an external terrace and lounge extension will be removed.
“To improve the relationship between the new building, courtyard and existing home, a new lounge extension will be located at the end of the wing,” the application states.
“Each wing has been planned as a ‘household’ in accordance with the National Aged Care Design Principles, encouraging familiarity and belonging through smaller resident communities.
“Each household includes its own dining space and kitchenette to support a more domestic living environment. Interior finishes have been selected to create a warm, comfortable atmosphere rather than a clinical setting.”
A key feature of the proposal is the landscaped courtyard formed between the new building and the existing home.
“This continues the established language of courtyards between the existing accommodation wings, providing shaded outdoor spaces for residents while improving outlook from surrounding resident rooms,” the application states.
“A new resident hub is integrated along the proposed corridor connection overlooking the landscaped courtyard. Consistent with the National Aged Care Design Principles, this space provides a destination within the home where staff, residents, and visitors can gather and socialise.
“It is intended to benefit the entire home, not only the new accommodation, and will support a neighbourhood feel.”
Designers have also put a high priority on reducing heat into the new accommodation block.
“The building has been oriented so that the shorter elevation faces west, where a brise soleil (an architectural sun-shading system designed to reduce heat gain and glare on a building’s exterior) provides effective shading from the lower and intense afternoon sun.
“The longer north facing elevation allows resident room glazing to be shaded more efficiently due to the higher sun angles, reducing direct solar penetration. This will directly improve resident comfort and lower operational cooling demands.”
The materials and façade include corrugated metal cladding and powder coated aluminium windows.
