by Leah Justice
leah.justice@tryondailybulletin.com

White Oak Manor is getting a major renovation that will add a new gym for physical therapy, reconfigure and make handicap accessible the front entrance and reconfigure existing rooms.

White Oak, located at 70 Oak Street, Tryon, was originally constructed in 1974 as a skilled nursing beds only facility.

More beds were needed, so in 1985, an addition was constructed in the rear of the building as well as a new wing consisting of 24 rooms for assisted living.

The new assisted living facility is named Benson Hall. At the time of the addition, Oneil Benson was a well- known pharmacist in the area and his wife Nell was the director of nursing at White Oak. The new assisted living area was named Benson Hall in Nell’s honor shortly after her death. She retired from White Oak because of illness.

“This is the first addition to our facility since 1985 and we are all very much looking forward to its completion,” said Mary Lance, administrator. “Although we are not adding any beds, we are doing some serious reconfiguring to better meet the needs of our community. Upon completion, we will have more short-term rehab beds and a new facility for physical, occupational and speech therapy. Because of the new gym we will also be better able to accommodate our patients for therapy.”

The front of the building, which will be moved to the side of the building, will house offices, a larger lobby and a new front porch with ramps. Currently patients and residents in wheelchairs have to enter the building through Benson Hall in the rear of the building.

The renovation will also mean less congestion in the building and more needed space for several departments, said Lance.

The new therapy gym is being constructed in the rear of the building.

Harper Construction of Greenville, S.C. is the contractor and White Oak employees say Harper couldn’t be more accommodating to ensure service is not interrupted during construction.

“We are all making the best of it right now,” Lance said, “because we have had to share offices and move into spaces we never thought of as office space, but overall, Harper has made things very easy in a situation that could have been less than pleasant and we are very glad to have them as part of this project.”

Construction on the front of the building is expected to be complete in June or July. Completion of the new gym is expected to be complete in September, according to Harper’s construction plan, weather permitting.