Minda appoints Gheorghiu as Executive Project Director of $200M+ Master Plan

Minda has announced the appointment of Ms Michelle Gheorghiu as Executive Project Director of its major $200M+ Master Plan development at Brighton.

Minda CEO, Ms Cathy Miller, said Ms Gheorghiu’ s extensive management experience with a number of major SA projects – including the $162m Flinders Medical Centre and $43.5m Lyell McEwin Hospital redevelopments - made her a well-credentialed choice for the critical role.

“Michelle comes to Minda after working for many years in very senior project management roles across the public and private sectors, in particular health care,” Ms Miller said.

“She offers a strong track record in managing large, very complex development projects and has comprehensive strategic and leadership experience within dynamic team environments,” she said.

Before her Minda appointment, Ms Gheorghiu was Director of Infrastructure and Capital Planning for the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAMHRI) where she managed the successful delivery of the $250m landmark construction project.

Prior to that, she was Projects Director with SA Health, where she oversaw procurement, planning and project delivery for a number of significant projects, including the Flinders Medical Centre and Lyell McEwin Hospitals redevelopment, as well as the Queen Elizabeth, Berri and Ceduna hospitals.

“The Master Plan is the largest of its type in the Nation and is one of the largest privately-funded projects currently underway in South Australia, and the successful delivery of future stages is critical for the sustainability of Minda for many years to come,” Ms Miller said.

“We are confident that Michelle will bring with her the skills and experience needed to realise the project’s vision of creating a vibrant community hub that offers leading edge accommodation for South Australians living with intellectual disability and allow for increased social inclusion in the way of integrated, community living,” she said.

In late 2014 Minda completed the first stage of its Master Plan development, which saw 61 people transition into supported, share-house living arrangements across a mix of single-storey three bedroom, four bedroom and exceptional needs dwellings, and an apartment building with 17 one and two bedroom apartments at the Brighton site.

In early 2015 the first residents of the Brighton Dunes retirement development, also constructed as part of the Stage One development activity, started moving into the 48 resort-style apartments.

Future stages of Minda’s Master Plan will expand on the number of purpose-built accommodation options available for people with disabilities, and support a contemporary model of service delivery, based on person centred thinking, where the individual is placed at the centre of decisions which impact their lives.

Ms Gheorghiu, who is due to start her new role in May, has a Master of Business Administration (Technology) from La Trobe University and a Master of Electrical Engineering from Polytechnic University in Bucharest.

About Minda

Established in 1898, Minda is the largest non-government disability support organisation in South Australia that assists individuals with intellectual disability to thrive in their local environments as valued members of their communities by offering residential and lifestyle services, employment and respite support.

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