A decade dream for the Canadian Mental Health Association - Swift Current Branch became a reality earlier this week.

The non-profit organization held an official sod turning event on Monday at their double vacant lot on 5th Avenue Northeast for a new approximate 5,000 square-foot facility to be constructed.

"Very, very excited," Todd Vallee, the executive director for the CMHA Swift Current Branch, said. "As I mentioned previously, there was so many people to mention and for that reason I didn't get into the laundry list but just so much work has gone into this."

Construction on the mostly grassy lot began this morning with Bridal Builders Inc. overseeing the project.

"You're going to see the back three-quarters maybe four-fifths be peeled back, start leveling, we're just waiting for the line locates," he said. "We're hoping to get the concrete work done before the frost sets in and then you will be seeing some exciting progression because for now it's just been dreams, words, and drawings on paper but when things start going into the ground it's exciting."

While the local CMHA branch raised enough money for the building itself, they're still fundraising for interior items.

"There are some wants, that are borderline needs, things that would very much help our organization in day-to-day operations make things easier for the members as well as the staff," he said. "If we have a little more funding I think we could better prepare the CMHA to be successful for decades."

Talks are underway with a few companies regarding an industrial kitchen, given they've delivered around 3,000 meals since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"That was delivered, that wasn't folks walking through our doors because we couldn't, because we were shut down," he said. "There are a lot of folks in the community that bank on us for breakfast and lunch."

The hope is for the facility to open in about a year's time but that may become a fluid timeframe depending on fundraising efforts.