GUNNISLAKE'S Woodland Centre for the elderly, which has been under development since 1993, will be officially opened on November 13 at 11am.
The centre has been set up by a trust and has cost around £84,000 to build. It will cater for 100 people, although fewer than that are expected to use it, at least in its early years.
Many elderly people who have had difficulty reaching parts of the village because of its very steep slopes are expected to benefit from the new meeting place.
It has a community room, kitchen, toilets, stores and ramps for wheelchairs. It is fully furnished and equipped and will be suitable for guest speakers and entertainers.
The money has been made up of a £69,000 National Lottery grant, delivered in three batches, and the balance raised by the supporters of the scheme. Caradon District Council gave the plot and will let the place to its users for a peppercorn rent and look after the decoration when needed.
The centre will be run by an organising group on behalf of the elderly of the village, according to Ted Mansergh, chairman of the Tamar Valley Tenants' Association and one of the originators of the project.
It is hoped that the opening will be done by the actor Edward Woodward, who is a patron of the trust, but he is selling his local residence and may not be available. In his absence it will be done by Godfrey Smale, chairman of the district council.
The other guests will include Eric Lewis, a district councillor, Ian Kirk, chairman of Calstock Parish Council and treasurer of the trust, Nora Coates, chairman of the trust, and John Bowring, deputy chairman of the TVTA.