KITCHENER -- A COVID-19 vaccination clinic has opened at the former RONA building on Pinebush Road in Cambridge on Monday.
The building will serve as a new mass vaccination site with up to 40 immunization stations.
Grand River Hospital will run the clinic in partnership with Cambridge Memorial Hospital.
The region's vaccination clinic at GRH is now closed as they make the move to the new location at 66 Pinebush Road.
Those attending the clinic are asked to allow a one hour window to complete the vaccination process, but not to arrive more than 10 minutes before your appointment.
Public health officials are also working on plans for clinics in North Dumfries and Elmira.
Media were not allowed into the site on Monday, but Cambridge Mayor Kathryn McGarry witnessed the opening.
"There were chills running up and down our spines, to actually see the vaccinations in progress, knowing that's going to bring about a better way of life in the future and we can go back to normal," she said.
There were 10 immunization stations open on Monday and that will ramp up to 20 by the end of this week. The eventual goal is 40 stations giving out 2,800 vaccines a day. The two mass vaccination clinics in Waterloo Region, one located at The Boardwalk and one at Pinebush Road in Cambridge, will combine for about 4,000 shots a day once supply allows. The clinic at The Boardwalk will adminster around 1,200 doses a day at full capacity.
A spokesperson for the vaccine task force said they have a capacity for 664 appointments a day right now.
Some residents were already able to get a vaccine on Monday morning.
"Streamlined," said Varun Mohan. "Straight in, couple questions, straight in the door, you're seated before you know it. Wonderful nurses, they sure know how to do it. Great technique, I didn't feel a darn thing."
"I really thought it was a wonderful place," Maria Ferreara said. "Very large, very nice, organized. I hope everyone gets vaccinated."
Vaccines are by appointment only. Eligible groups, which now includes people between 70 and 79, can pre-register on the region's website.
Regional officials said Smart Centres is letting them use the building at no cost.
To date, more than 54,400 people have received their first dose in Waterloo Region, with over 14,000 people now considered fully vaccinated.
With reporting by CTV News Kitchener's Krista Simpson
