Construction will begin this year on a new long-term care facility for seniors in the Comox Valley, the province announced Wednesday.

The facility, which will be built on Cliffe Avenue in Courtenay, will be home to 126 publicly funded permanent beds, including 120 residential care beds and six hospice beds. It will be operated by Golden Life management Corp.

"Our government is taking action to make sure the needs of frail, elderly seniors with complex conditions are met across the region," B.C. health minister Adrian Dix said in a news release. "In conjunction with our action plan to increase direct-care hours, we are expanding the availability of residential and dementia care in the Comox Valley."

The facility is expected to open as early as next year, Island Health said.

The province also announced that The Views at St. Joseph's, a currently operating senior care facility in Comox, will be taken over by Providence Residential and Community Care Society this April.

As part of the deal, the care society will redevelop that facility, making 21 temporary residential care beds permanent and adding up to 10 new care beds.

The province says the new facility is part of a $240-million investment to increase direct care for seniors at residential facilities across the province.