With the demolition of an old house in the Australian capital of Canberra, members of the city’s Jewish community are anxiously awaiting the construction of their first ritual bath on the cleared site.

Rabbi Dan and Naomi Avital, who opened Chabad-Lubavitch of the Australian Capital Territory last year, estimate the new facility will be operational by mid-January.

“We are incredibly excited at having started building the first mikvah in Canberra,” says the rabbi. “Many of the local women, diplomatic families, and interstate and international visitors have been waiting for this for many years. We have seen a tremendous growth in the community and participation in our events over this [past] year, and we believe this is the right time for this extraordinary development.”